The Code Freeze 2021 virtual conference culminated in a two-hour mob programming (a.k.a. ensemble work or samman) workshop. Seventy-four participants worked in 17 groups, each facilitated by an experienced mobber. Facilitators included such luminaries as Woody Zuill, Llewellyn Falco, and Jeff Langr, among lesser lights.
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Category: software development
Pain today, gain tomorrow?
Many of us who try to help others learn and use good software development practices have made the case that if only a person would try a recommended technique and get used to it, eventually they would see improvements in code quality and a reduction in delivery time, and probably easier maintenance of the code base, too.
It’s generally true that when we begin to learn a new skill we work more slowly than we will after we’ve learned to apply the skill effectively. This seems to make many people hesitant to try anything different than their current practices. The idea of slowing down temporarily in order to improve “later” is hard to accept. People have difficulty accepting any short-term cost in order to achieve long-term gain.
But what does it mean…eventually or later or after a while? When is “eventually?” How much “later?” How long is “a while?” People are afraid the temporary slow-down during their initial learning curve will have too much impact on delivery time, or will take too long to overcome.