To pair, or not to pair

A talk about pair programming, an agile development practice that still has only relatively patchy adoption across the industry. I talked about a few of the top benefits, then highlighted the challenges, and talked about why I believe those challenges are worth the hassle.

Presented at ThoughtWorks' XConf in New York in July 2018.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_eZ-ae2FY8

Transcript

1. To Pair or not to Pair Birgitta Böckeler | @birgitta410
2. 1940s: The first programmers
3. “Betty Snyder and I, from the beginning, were a pair. And I believe that the best programs and designs are done by pairs, because you can criticise each other, and find each other’s errors, and use the best ideas.” Jean Bartik http://www.computerhistory.org/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/78/2258 1940s: The first programmers
4. 50 years later
5. https://www.thoughtworks.com/insights/blog/what-are-our-core-values-and-practices-building-software
7. 1 IT’S A LONG GAME.
8. https://martinfowler.com/bliki/PairProgrammingMisconceptions.html
9. 2 ONE DOES NOT SIMPLY PAIR PROGRAM.
10. IS IT WORTH THE HASSLE? CHALLENGES EFFECTIVENESS
11. 1 + 1 > 2
12. 1 + 1 > 2
13. FOCUS
14. FOCUS
16. FOCUS
17. TRUE CONTINUOUS INTEGRATION
18. TRUE CONTINUOUS INTEGRATION
19. CHALLENGES EFFECTIVENESS 1+1>2 FOCUS CONT. INTEGRATION …
20. ENERGY
21. ENERGY
22. COLLABORATION
23. COLLABORATION
24. IT’S PERSONAL
25. “To pair requires vulnerability. It means sharing all that you know and all that you don’t know. This is hard for us.” Tom Howlett, “The Shame of Pair Programming” https://diaryofascrummaster.wordpress.com/2013/09/30/the-shame-of-pair-programming/
26. “you can criticise each other and find each other’s errors”
27. IS IT WORTH THE HASSLE? CHALLENGES ENERGY INTENSE COLLAB. IT’S PERSONAL … EFFECTIVENESS 1+1>2 FOCUS CONT. INTEGRATION …
28. Giving & Receiving Feedback Communication
29. Pia Nilsson, “Knowing Me, Knowing You - Growing teams to continuously deliver” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S92vVAEofes
30. Pia Nilsson, “Knowing Me, Knowing You - Growing teams to continuously deliver” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S92vVAEofes Diversity
31. https://hbr.org/2016/09/diverse-teams-feel-less-comfortable-and-thats-why-they-perform-better
32. https://hbr.org/2016/09/diverse-teams-feel-less-comfortable-and-thats-why-they-perform-better
33. https://hbr.org/2016/09/diverse-teams-feel-less-comfortable-and-thats-why-they-perform-better
34. IT’S FUN!
35. Pia Nilsson, “Knowing Me, Knowing You - Growing teams to continuously deliver” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S92vVAEofes
37. EMBRACING CHANGE += EMBRACING FRICTION
38. To Pair or not to Pair Do something today that your future self will thank you for. Birgitta Böckeler | @birgitta410