Extreme Programming - Whats have you found helps with transitioning to XP?

Author

Whats have you found helps with transitioning to XP?

Andrew McDonagh

2005-05-20, 8:56 pm

Bit of background, as the XP advocate,I successfully managed to
introduce XP onto my team within the company. We do all of the practices
to one degree of success or another (on-site customer has never been
possible, so we have gone with one-customer-voice where one or more
company employees proxy for the many different real customers - but
lets not delve on this aspect within this thread). However, I've just
accepted a new job at a large multinational drug company, who are
turning their entire software development process around to the agile/XP
way - very exciting times! : -)

So of course, this has got me thinking about what worked, what hampered,
what surprises occurred during the introduction of XP into my current
team, so that I could apply those or different techniques/tactics at my
new job.

For me, I think the biggest change in the teams dynamics occurred when
we rearranged the furniture and had dedicated Pairing machines, with the
same software, with the same configurations (desktops, Code formatters,
etc). I saw that people tended to move around more and usually paired
with different people more.

However, I also realise now, that we left it too late. We'd been XPing
for nearly a year before we got straight desks ( snipped long story
about bureaucratic time wasting). By this time, some issues had formed
which I 'think' may not have if we'd changed the working environment at
the beginning.

Issues included but not limited too:

One person driving the keyboard most of the day, leaving their pair
feeling more like an observer rather than an equal or leaving them just
plain bored.

Switching pairs made more awkward as each developers own PC was
setup as they preferred it - and everyone has their own ideas about what
is good here.

The 'visiting' pair could feel like they were invading the others
personal space, when they worked at their personal desk - nik naks,
family pictures, phones etc.

Resistance to change environment once straight tables finally
arrived, even though they made working in pairs actually more
ergonomic/easier.

So I think, when I'm starting to help a company transition to working
with XP, I'd push for changing the working environments physical layout
as early as possible.

What do you think?
What have you seen?
What have you done?

Any info greatly appreciated.

Regards

Andrew

Phlip

2005-05-21, 3:56 pm

Andrew McDonagh wrote:

> Bit of background, as the XP advocate,I successfully managed to
> introduce XP onto my team within the company.

Dude, the number one success criteria is to have someone onsite who has
already transitioned.

> What do you think?
> What have you seen?
> What have you done?

Try this:

http://industrialxp.org/projectChartering.html

It is pure cheerleading, plus "test-driven management", which is essentially
away of incrementally testing the boss's compliance to Agility.

--
Phlip
[url]http://www.c2.com/cgi/wiki?Z

Land[/url]

Ron Jeffries

2005-05-21, 3:56 pm

Andrew McDonagh

2005-05-21, 8:56 pm

Phlip wrote:
> Andrew McDonagh wrote:
>
>
>
>
> Dude, the number one success criteria is to have someone onsite who has
> already transitioned.

We'll be starting off in the right direction then, there's already
another advocate there (just started last w

).

>
>
>
>
> Try this:
>
> http://industrialxp.org/projectChartering.html
>
> It is pure cheerleading, plus "test-driven management", which is essentially
> away of incrementally testing the boss's compliance to Agility.
>

oh yes IXP's TDM, cheers I'll re-read it.

Andrew

Andrew McDonagh

2005-05-21, 8:56 pm

Ron Jeffries wrote:
> On Sat, 21 May 2005 00:01:19 +0100, Andrew McDonagh
> <news@andrewcdonagh.f2s.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
> Mike Hill, one of the top transitioners in the universe, insists on a
> team making the space commitment as a prerequisite to his helping
> them.
>
> I think he might be right to do that.
>
> Regards,
>

Cheers for that Ron.

Its good to know what I've perceived has been seen by others. Just
looked at Mike's slide form XP2004 - very interesting!

Some more Googling required I think...

regards

Andrew

Robert C. Martin

2005-05-26, 3:56 am

On Sat, 21 May 2005 00:01:19 +0100, Andrew McDonagh
<news@andrewcdonagh.f2s.com> wrote:

>So I think, when I'm starting to help a company transition to working
>with XP, I'd push for changing the working environments physical layout
>as early as possible.

Agreed. When we help companies transition, this is one of the first
things we get them to do. Indeed, we've postponed transitions to wait
for the open office to get set up.

More than one customer has told us that the creation of the open
office had a visibly positive effect on the team, even before the
transition started.

-----
Robert C. Martin (Uncle Bob) | email: unclebob@objectmentor.com
Object Mentor Inc. | blog: www.butunclebob.com
The Agile Transition Experts | web: www.objectmentor.com
800-338-6716

"The aim of science is not to open the door to infinite wisdom,
but to set a limit to infinite error."
-- Bertolt Brecht, Life of Galileo

Andrew McDonagh

2005-05-26, 8:59 pm

Robert C. Martin wrote:
> On Sat, 21 May 2005 00:01:19 +0100, Andrew McDonagh
> <news@andrewcdonagh.f2s.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
> Agreed. When we help companies transition, this is one of the first
> things we get them to do. Indeed, we've postponed transitions to wait
> for the open office to get set up.
>
> More than one customer has told us that the creation of the open
> office had a visibly positive effect on the team, even before the
> transition started.
>
>

Cheers for this Bob.

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