Prevent cross-functional Silo thinking teams

It's quite unlikely that the scope and the tasks for every sprint will be as same balanced as competences in the team. What would happen, if it will be a lot of java tasks and none for UI designer?

I don't believe that .NET developers couldn't write a piece of java code. Java developer could still take care of all critical java task, but the rest might be assigned to every member and be finished with java expert's help.

Probably every team member is T-shape person, ie he/she is an expert in his/her domain, but still have a little knowledge about other technologies.

> Because team members can't help each other out...

why? they are not co-located?

Posted By Xebord on 25 Apr 2014 05:02 PM
It's quite unlikely that the scope and the tasks for every sprint will be as same balanced as competences in the team. What would happen, if it will be a lot of java tasks and none for UI designer?

Yep, that is a big chance that this scenario can happen.

I don't believe that .NET developers couldn't write a piece of java code. Java developer could still take care of all critical java task, but the rest might be assigned to every member and be finished with java expert's help.

I believe that .NET developers can recognize Java syntaxis and vice versa. But recognizing the syntaxis is 1 thing, coding alongside is something totally different. Especially if both domain uses their own specific IDE, frameworks, tools, libraries etc.
I've worked in many Scrum teams in the past and never once have I seen a Java developer starting doing .NET development and vice versa.

Fully agree that Java != .NET. But they are still developers. Most of coders are used to learn constantly. If there is no task for java developer what s/he can do? Can install specific .NET IDE, frameworks, tools, libraries etc. and try to learn. It's better that do nothing. Even if java developer must assist the rest, it will be an investment for the future.

I also believe that some members of the team would like to try something new. Once I had to become a tester, but I was a developer, because there too few coding task. And finally I really enjoy the testing.

Did you talk about it with the team?

Posted By Xebord on 26 Apr 2014 04:53 PM
Fully agree that Java != .NET. But they are still developers. Most of coders are used to learn constantly. If there is no task for java developer what s/he can do? Can install specific .NET IDE, frameworks, tools, libraries etc. and try to learn. It's better that do nothing. Even if java developer must assist the rest, it will be an investment for the future.

I also believe that some members of the team would like to try something new. Once I had to become a tester, but I was a developer, because there too few coding task. And finally I really enjoy the testing.

Did you talk about it with the team?

This is a hypothetical situation. I’m lucky that we only do PHP development so no other languages are required. (for now)
Let’s say we remove .NET so the team consists of the following members:
3 Java Developers
1 UX Designer
1 Tridion Developer
1 Business Analyst
2 Tester
Now the UX and Tridion domain are totally different.
So again, how do you make sure that your team doesn’t go into the so-called 'silo thinking'.
I’m sure a lot of teams has been facing these kind of issues. Just wondering what others would do.

> How do you make sure that your team doesn’t go into the so-called 'silo thinking'

Unfortunately this isn't just a matter of "silo thinking". Developers, designers, BA's and testers can have their titles in their job descriptions and employment contracts, and it may also reflect their career expectations.

The first challenge is to build a willingness to cross-train in such conditions. That means change, and change involves a certain level of risk. Some people may have a very low risk tolerance for good reason. Imagine for example a recently qualified tester who is just finding their feet after (say) becoming a single parent. If that person changes their skill set, it could have implications for their employability and consequently upon their ability to meet family responsibilities. Silo busting gets even more complicated when part-time workers are thrown in the mix, as their opportunities to partake in the effort may be reduced.

I don't think there's any real solution to this. The important thing is to be aware of the constraints that people perceive as affecting them. I don't like the term "silo thinking", as it implies that the problem can be reduced to the elimination of some sort of mental block. While a mental block to cross-training can exist in some individuals, the true story behind organizational skill silos tends to be more complex than that.

ScM is also a coach. Hence I try to introduce T-shape people concept and bus factor. And how it might impact the team and work.

Usually in the team there are a few people are willing to learn new technologies (and few aren't because the prefer be an expert in the narrow area).

Also the team members understand if there is no work in their specialization they can't add anything to the increment. So better to even shadow the overloaded mate (pair programming) and learn something.

How do you make sure that your team doesn’t go into the so-called 'silo thinking'.

I believe if we keep the team together and help them learn from each other using pair programming techniques then over time the 'silo' thinking should break down. Scrum master should help with mentoring and coaching the team to achieve this. There is no silver bullet, you will need to work at it and help bring the change in behaviour.

Best of luck with your Scrum team :)