Keynote talk given by Tony Wasserman at the OpenSym 2015 conference in San Francisco on 19 August 2015

1. Barriers and Pathways to
Successful Collaboration
Anthony I. (Tony) Wasserman
Carnegie Mellon University- Silicon Valley
Keynote: OpenSym 2015
San Francisco: 19 August 2015

2. Key Question:
What are the Factors and Conditions
that make Teams Successful (or Not)?

3. Successful Collaboration: a Victory Celebration
Photo: Tony Wasserman

4. About the Winning Team
• 31 teams with less success than the champion
– But some may be very happy with their team's results
• Varied individual contributions to overall team success
• Possible to be a valuable contributor in limited role
• Possible to be part of a successful team without contributing
– Substitutes ready to play as needed
• No assurance that this team would be as successful again
– Luck, injuries, weather
• Not all team members are visible
– Trainer, physician, nutritionist, drivers, specialty coaches
• Management decides team membership and playing time

5. We don't often see such
celebrations for software!
KDE Release Party – WooHoo!

6. Many Types of Teams

7. The Beatles
Four Equal
Members?

8. The Beatles
What about the
well-known
manager?

9. The Beatles
What about
the famous
producer?

10. Is This the “Real” Beatles Team?
The Beatles with
Brian Epstein and
George Martin

11. The “Real” Beatles Team also included
• Album cover photographer
• Album design (Meet the Beatles and With the Beatles)
• Contributors from Capitol and Parlophone labels
• Fan club organizers and members
• And many more after 1963...

12. Many people work in the background –
some visible, some not

13. Team Members in the Background (1)
Copyright © Getty ImagesMarvin Gaye and the Blossoms

14. Team Members in the Background (2)
Copyright © Christopher Polk/AMA2013/Getty Images for DCPAriana Grande

15. Can Team Members Be Easily Replaced?
• The Beatles replaced Pete Best
• Stuart Sutcliffe voluntarily left the band
• Some team members choose to leave a team
• Some team members go on to greater individual recognition
• Some team members are more easily replaced
– But frequent replacements may cause team stresses
How Do Changes Affect Teamwork?

16. Team Success and Failure
1994 World Cup shootout – Pagliuca block
Photo Copyright © 1994, Tony Wasserman

17. Who is Successful in this Situation?
• Did the keeper succeed? (His team lost.)
• Did the shooter fail? (His team won.)

18. Factors for Team Success/Failure
• Shared goals
• Right place at right time (some luck)
• Right mix of skills on the team
• Superstar(s) on the team
• Departure of disruptive person(s) – team chemistry
• Cultural similarities and differences
• Location: co-located or distributed
• Funding and other external support

19. Back to Software
• Almost all of these concepts apply to software teams
• Differences between community FOSS teams and
traditional commercial teams
• But similarities outweigh differences

20. Community FOSS
• Dependent on volunteers
• Project lead(s), committers, contributors, viewers
• “Flat” organization
• Types of contributors
―Coders
―Documenters
―Translators
―Testers
―Community managers

21. Collaboration Challenges in Community FOSS
• “Managing” volunteers
 Finding people with the needed technical skills
 Keeping key people actively involved
 Minimizing disruptions to team harmony
 Developing a technical decision-making process
 Developing a leadership style
 Setting project priorities
 Adjusting to staff transitions and forks

22. Commercial Software Product Teams
• Paid employees and contractors
• Typically hierarchical organization
• Product roadmap
• Work with non-technical business units
 Marketing, support, sales, finance, training
• Schedules
• Budgets

23. Collaboration Challenges in Commercial
Product Development
• Recruiting, managing, and retaining staff
• Reporting up and sideways
• Improving team effectiveness
 Handling disruptive people
 Adjusting to cultural differences
 Handling disruptive events
 Development processes and tools
• Setting feasible priorities and schedules

24. Disruptive Events
Large and Small
• Management and organizational changes
• Schedule changes
• Counterproductive activities
• Personal conflicts
• Interviewing job candidates
• Phone calls, message streams, and email

25. Elements of successful collaboration
• Agreement on goals and plans
• Availability of needed technical skills
• Team leadership and management
• Resolving conflicts and disruptions
• Accommodating team arrivals and departures
• Celebrating key milestones
• Recognizing individual contributions

26. Many things can go wrong...
• Absence of shared vision and focus
• Lack of clarity on important details
• Unforeseen technical complexities
• Budget overruns (or an unrealistic budget)
• Schedule problems
• Key people leave
• Conflicting individual goals
• Logistical problems
• Cultural, personal, political differences
• Discrimination

27. It's a wonder that
projects ever succeed!

28. Pathways to Successful Collaboration
• Setting expectations for teamwork
– Code of conduct
– Termination of those who violate code
• Setting expectations for work
– Regular and consistent reporting – beyond daily standups
– Changed assignments for those who don't produce
• Setting realistic budgets and schedules
– Early pushback against “death march” projects
• Encouraging collegiality
– Informal meetings (in person if possible)
– Getting to know one another
– Management or third-party coaching on teamwork and leadership

29. Additional Resources
• Tom DeMarco and Tim Lister, Peopleware (3rd
ed.), 2013
• Jono Bacon, The Art of Community (2nd
ed.), 2012
• Paul Glen, Leading Geeks, 2003

30. Monument Valley – Utah
Copyright © 2015, Tony Wasserman
Contact Info:
Tony Wasserman
Email: tonyw@sv.cmu.edu
Twitter: @twasserman