Audio-video recording of ad hoc software development team interactions

Authors:
Sebastien Cherry;Pierre N. Robillard
Affiliations:
Department of Computer and Software Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, C.P. 6079. Succ. Centre-Ville, Qc, Canada, H3C 3A7;Department of Computer and Software Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal, C.P. 6079. Succ. Centre-Ville, Qc, Canada, H3C 3A7
Venue:
CHASE '09 Proceedings of the 2009 ICSE Workshop on Cooperative and Human Aspects on Software Engineering
Year:
2009

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Abstract

Ad hoc interactions characterize the natural behaviors observed in any teamwork situation. Our objective is to find out how these interactions are related to the roles team mates play. Observations on the phenomenon are based on audio-video recordings of software development team interactions occurring in a large software development organization with a highly standardized software development process in place. Detailed observations were recorded on the activities of four of the twelve members of the development team. Thirty-five hours of audio-video recordings were analyzed, in which a total of 404 face-to-face ad hoc collaborative interactions were observed. The results provided a quantitative demonstration of the impact of a newcomer, a “guru”, and a project manager on the team dynamics. This study, although conducted in a specific professional environment, can provide useful information for a better understanding of the face-to-face communication needs of a software development team.