Swarm: Beyond Pair, beyond Scrum

"Auklet flock" by D. Dibenski

I’m Danijel•#swarming #AgileTD•@darsenovski•http://bit.ly/swarmexp

Quiz•According to a recent study, people are happier when they visit an exotic location on their vacation•True or false?

How I discovered Swarming

2014

Catalysts•We encountered: •A crisis•An unfinished, unusable application in production

•We agreed:• To work on 1 item at a time

What makes a swarm?

•WIP of 1•Done when deployed into production and approved by PO• Items are pulled in•“Mobbing” on code, and on everything else•No Estimates

Fluid leadership, no decision making, no roles, no ceremonies

Swarm patterns

Branch out Keep one in the darkSpread out

Problem Solving

Benefits•Work environment for human beings

Productivity?“Let’s focus instead on impediments” (Woody Zuill) and how swarming helps overcoming them:• No interruptions• No context switching• No ”blocked” time• No branches in our code or code reviews• Better quality•Maximizes learning•Maximizes robustness• Instant on-boarding

2015 – Today

3rd Floor at Alaska Airlines McGee Building

Swarming went viral•First team stuck with it for approx. 6 months•Monitors were initial impediments•First monitor purchase open floodgates

”Corporate” Swarm patterns

Ambassadors Hijack

Swarming principles •RESPECT•Don’t say NO•All ideas are considered•Everybody should have it’s say•Consent over Consensus•Maintain the flow

In the beginning•Action figures•Mediators

What I learned about motivation•Name 3 factors that lead to better performance (Dan Pink)•Master•Autonomy •Purpose

•Swarming adds:•Helping others (altruism)• Teaching•Human interaction

Quiz•According to a recent study, people are happier when they visit an exotic location on their vacation•True or false?•False!

Social animals"Man is by nature a social animal…”

Swarming is social and it’s fun!

Thank you!Danijel ArsenovskiTwitter: @darsenovski

Questions?