Re: [extremeprogramming] What has changed for you over the past 20 years?

"Avi Kessner" <[email protected]> Sun, 8 Dec 2019 09:25:20 +0200
Newsgroups gmane.comp.programming.extreme-programming
Message-ID <CAGEhWpH49apQGeAH35KX+xjiTGm3Eqn4w+cEr++V-n9TS4F9jg@mail.gmail.com>
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I had an idea the other night. It's both really silly but also maybe good,
and mybe it's been tried before.

I was thinking about the principles of TDD and how it fits into XP in
general.

What if before committing to the practices, a developer had a way of
gaining feedback that they are capable of implementing the practices. I.e.
a test, a self assessment test.

Take this test, and if you score well, you can have confirmation/confidenc=
e
that you can engage in X practice safely.

On Sun, Dec 8, 2019, 05:58 Larry Brunelle <[email protected]> wrote:

>
> Thanks for an interesting and enlightening parsing and distilling of
> wisdom found in some posts by others.  Humans (often regrettably) are
> motivated, and behave, well, like humans, and failure to recognize
> the same can get us bit pretty good.
>
> Phil Goodwin wrote:
> > Sometimes it pays to not fight fire with fire. Things that are not wel=
l
> said are perhaps still worth saying.
> >
> > I think there's an interesting tension here. At the root are the
> patterns of dysfunction that pop up in the way people organize themselve=
s
> to get work done. As a broad generalization we can try to get rid of the
> dysfunction by finding a better way and selling it, or we can meet the
> organizations we encounter where they are and whittle away at the
> dysfunction one behavior at a time.
> >
> > When I read Robin's post I'm reminded of the times we've tried to brin=
g
> XP into an organization whose developers understood it well and were cle=
ar
> about not wanting it. One of the big problems I've encountered while
> fighting dysfunction is that dysfunction is not the same as non-function=
.
> Dysfunctional systems work. They just work in a way that is unpleasant o=
r
> otherwise sub-optimal (usually by indirectly fulfilling needs that someo=
ne
> feels shame about). If you try to fix the dysfunction without fulfilling
> the unstated need the system will start pushing your changes right back =
out.
> >
> > James is right to be suspicious of any methodology that sells easily
> because transformative change is always uncomfortable (or else you'd
> already be doing it) and discomfort doesn't sell. I hear Robin making a
> different point, which is that we need to meet our teams in the conditio=
n
> where we find them and understand that they may be optimizing for differ=
ent
> values than we are. James is warning us away from accepting superficial
> changes that don't address the underlying issues. Robin is saying that w=
e
> shouldn't be so stuck on our own values that we lose sight of what our
> customers are valuing. I think there's some common ground to be found in
> recognizing the need to dig into the needs and beliefs that drive the
> behaviors of the teams we're leading in order to improve the way they
> operate. When we do that we'll run into our own ideas about what is opti=
mal
> and often find that they are in conflict with the other leadership aroun=
d
> us. It's in the process of resolving those
> > conflicts that real improvements will come.
> >
> > And it's the process of resolution, not the resolution itself, that
> brings about meaningful change. If the process unfolds in an honest and
> vulnerable way the results will work if they are at all practical. If it
> doesn't no amount of formal structure will save the team from itself.
> >
> > On Fri, Dec 6, 2019, 6:34 PM Tim Ottinger via Groups.Io <linux_tim=3D
> [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:
> >
> >     Aggro much?
> >
> >     I think that there is no reason that people who aren=E2=80=99t
> pro-certification aren=E2=80=99t innovators in plenty of areas. Case in =
point: the
> original XP people.  I don=E2=80=99t think I=E2=80=99ve seen an XP certi=
fication, so there
> are no innovators there? Do certifications cause innovation or prevent i=
t?
> >
> >     Now, that said, none of us gets to choose who the innovators are i=
n
> the world. You can expect whatever you want, as long as you don=E2=80=99=
t blame the
> world for not meeting your expectations.
> >
> >     J. Holmes is well respected for his teaching, thinking, writing. I
> don=E2=80=99t think we need to rag on him or his views here.
> >
> >
> >
> >     Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPad <
> https://overview.mail.yahoo.com/?.src=3DiOS>
> >
> >     On Wednesday, December 4, 2019, 19:03, R Dymond <[email protected]=
et
> <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:
> >
> >         Great. So we will not expect any innovation from you. That's O=
K.
> It took me a while to realize that Extreme Positions don't really do
> anything except reflect on me. Calling things broken doesn't fix it.
> Waiting for others to change means everything is out of my control, and
> that is handy if I want to criticize, and it absolves me of any
> responsibility. These days I prefer to act, to have empathy, to recogniz=
e
> that people have succeeded without many of the ideas we advocate. So we =
are
> not "right," we have a different approach that we think is better. Our
> CUSTOMERS by in large do not agree that it is better.
> >
> >         Regards
> >         Robin
> >
> >         On Wed, Dec 4, 2019, 5:44 PM <[email protected] <mailto:
> [email protected]>> wrote:
> >
> >             I'm always fascinated by folks who look at the corrupt,
> burning garbage heap that is Scrum Certification and think, "I want that=
,
> but for development practices."
> >
> >             I'm increasingly of the opinion that XP remains useful
> precisely because it has not had the same popularity that Scrum has
> suffered. I'm likewise of the opinion that something that sells as well =
as
> Scrum in a market full of broken management systems and toxic workplaces=
 is
> to be viewed with extreme suspicion.
> >
> >
>
>
>=20
>
>

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<div dir=3D"auto">I had an idea the other night. It&#39;s both really silly=
 but also maybe good, and mybe it&#39;s been tried before.<div dir=3D"auto"=
><br></div><div dir=3D"auto">I was thinking about the principles of TDD and=
 how it fits into XP in general.</div><div dir=3D"auto"><br></div><div dir=
=3D"auto">What if before committing to the practices, a developer had a wa=
y of gaining feedback that they are capable of implementing the practices. =
I.e. a test, a self assessment test.</div><div dir=3D"auto"><br></div><div =
dir=3D"auto">Take this test, and if you score well, you can have confirmati=
on/confidence that you can engage in X practice safely.</div></div><br><div=
 class=3D"gmail_quote"><div dir=3D"ltr" class=3D"gmail_attr">On Sun, Dec 8,=
 2019, 05:58 Larry Brunelle &lt;<a href=3D"mailto:[email protected]">brunel=
[email protected]</a>&gt; wrote:<br></div><blockquote class=3D"gmail_quote" style=
=
=3D"margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><br>
Thanks for an interesting and enlightening parsing and distilling of<br>
wisdom found in some posts by others.=C2=A0 Humans (often regrettably) are=
<br>
motivated, and behave, well, like humans, and failure to recognize<br>
the same can get us bit pretty good.<br>
<br>
Phil Goodwin wrote:<br>
&gt; Sometimes it pays to not fight fire with fire. Things that are not we=
ll said are perhaps still worth saying.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; I think there&#39;s an interesting tension here. At the root are the =
patterns of dysfunction that pop up in the way people organize themselves t=
o get work done. As a broad generalization we can try to get rid of the dys=
function by finding a better way and selling it, or we can meet the organiz=
ations we encounter where they are and whittle away at the dysfunction one =
behavior at a time.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; When I read Robin&#39;s post I&#39;m reminded of the times we&#39;ve =
tried to bring XP into an organization whose developers understood it well =
and were clear about not wanting it. One of the big problems I&#39;ve encou=
ntered while fighting dysfunction is that dysfunction is not the same as no=
n-function. Dysfunctional systems work. They just work in a way that is unp=
leasant or otherwise sub-optimal (usually by indirectly fulfilling needs th=
at someone feels shame about). If you try to fix the dysfunction without fu=
lfilling the unstated need the system will start pushing your changes right=
 back out.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; James is right to be suspicious of any methodology that sells easily =
because transformative change is always uncomfortable (or else you&#39;d al=
ready be doing it) and discomfort doesn&#39;t sell.=C2=A0I hear Robin makin=
g a different point, which is that we need to meet our teams in the conditi=
on where we find them and understand that they may be optimizing for differ=
ent values than we are. James is warning us away from accepting superficial=
 changes that don&#39;t address the underlying issues. Robin is saying that=
 we shouldn&#39;t be so stuck on our own values that we lose sight of what =
our customers are valuing. I think there&#39;s some common ground to be fou=
nd in recognizing the need to dig into the needs and beliefs that drive the=
 behaviors of the teams we&#39;re leading in order to improve the way they =
operate. When we do that we&#39;ll run into our own ideas about what is opt=
imal and often find that they are in conflict with the other leadership aro=
und us. It&#39;s in the process of resolving those <br>
&gt; conflicts that real improvements will come.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; And it&#39;s the process of resolution, not the resolution itself, th=
at brings about meaningful change. If the process unfolds in an honest and =
vulnerable way the results will work if they are at all practical. If it do=
esn&#39;t no amount of formal structure will save the team from itself.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; On Fri, Dec 6, 2019, 6:34 PM Tim Ottinger via Groups.Io &lt;linux_tim=
=
=3D<a href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" target=3D"_blank" rel=3D"norefer=
rer">[email protected]</a> &lt;mailto:<a href=3D"mailto:yahoo.com@groups.=
io" target=3D"_blank" rel=3D"noreferrer">[email protected]</a>&gt;&gt; wr=
ote:<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0Aggro much?<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0I think that there is no reason that people who ar=
en=E2=80=99t pro-certification aren=E2=80=99t innovators in plenty of areas=
. Case in point: the original XP people.=C2=A0 I don=E2=80=99t think I=E2=
=80=99ve seen an XP certification, so there are no innovators there? Do ce=
rtifications cause innovation or prevent it?<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0Now, that said, none of us gets to choose who the =
innovators are in the world. You can expect whatever you want, as long as y=
ou don=E2=80=99t blame the world for not meeting your expectations.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0J. Holmes is well respected for his teaching, thin=
king, writing. I don=E2=80=99t think we need to rag on him or his views her=
e.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPad &lt;<a href=3D"https=
://overview.mail.yahoo.com/?.src=3DiOS" rel=3D"noreferrer noreferrer" targe=
t=3D"_blank">https://overview.mail.yahoo.com/?.src=3DiOS</a>&gt;<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0On Wednesday, December 4, 2019, 19:03, R Dymond &l=
t;<a href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" target=3D"_blank" rel=3D"noreferre=
r">[email protected]</a> &lt;mailto:<a href=3D"mailto:[email protected]=
" target=3D"_blank" rel=3D"noreferrer">[email protected]</a>&gt;&gt; wrot=
e:<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0Great. So we will not expect any inn=
ovation from you. That&#39;s OK. It took me a while to realize that Extreme=
 Positions don&#39;t really do anything except reflect on me. Calling thing=
s broken doesn&#39;t fix it. Waiting for others to change means everything =
is out of my control, and that is handy if I want to criticize, and it abso=
lves me of any responsibility. These days I prefer to act, to have empathy,=
 to recognize that people have succeeded without many of the ideas we advoc=
ate. So we are not &quot;right,&quot; we have a different approach that we =
think is better. Our CUSTOMERS by in large do not agree that it is better.<=
br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0Regards<br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0Robin<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0On Wed, Dec 4, 2019, 5:44 PM &lt;<a =
href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" target=3D"_blank" rel=3D"noreferrer"=
>[email protected]</a> &lt;mailto:<a href=3D"mailto:james.holmes@gmail=
.com" target=3D"_blank" rel=3D"noreferrer">[email protected]</a>&gt;&g=
t; wrote:<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0I&#39;m always fascina=
ted by folks who look at the corrupt, burning garbage heap that is Scrum Ce=
rtification and think, &quot;I want that, but for development practices.&qu=
ot;<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt;=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0I&#39;m increasingly o=
f the opinion that XP remains useful precisely because it has not had the s=
ame popularity that Scrum has suffered. I&#39;m likewise of the opinion tha=
t something that sells as well as Scrum in a market full of broken manageme=
nt systems and toxic workplaces is to be viewed with extreme suspicion.<br>
&gt; <br>
&gt; <br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
</blockquote></div>

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