4 secrets of effective
collaboration
Matt Wynne
JaSST Review ‘22

Who is Matt?

Born in August 1975, EnglandThat makes me 47 now

BBC Micro, 1985
My ﬁrst computer
32k RAM
2Mhz CPU
Very hackable!
BBC Basic; Assembler
5¼” ﬂoppy discs

Niseko-Hirafu, 1999

Cucumber, 2007

The Cucumber Book, 2011

SmartBear acquisition, 2019

Cucumber, 2022

CITCON
October 2008,
Amsterdam

http://me.andering.com/2008/10/21/as-a-programmer-i-want-to-go-to-a-coders-dojo-so-that-i-can-improve-my-skills/

September 2009,London
https://lrug.org/meetings/2009/#september-2009-meetingFast feedback
Trunk-based development; TDD
Example Mapping

Secret #1/4:

Small pieces (小分け)“Let’s make toast:
you burn it, I’ll scrape it”– W. Edwards DemingLimiting work inprogress (WIP)Simplicity is theart ofmaximizing theamount of work
not done.

25 minutes, max
3 amigos (minimum)QUESTION
Story
QUESTION

rule

examplerule

exampleexampleSmall pieces ﬂow
through your team.

FeedbackLook after yourself
Be respectful of others
Let all voices be heard
Interdependency over ego

Secret #2/4:

Be kind (誠実)Patriarchy:

A culture of control
and domination

Collaboration
happens when
everyone is heard.

Use your social
power to help
others lesspowerful.

Emotional
triggers are“hereditary”

Be kind to yourself
so that you can bekind to others.

Three types of feedback:Appreciation
Evaluation
Coaching

Appreciation● I see how hard you’reworking● I think you’re doing agreat job
● Thanks for helping me
prepare for themeeting● …

Evaluation● You’re hired● You’re ﬁred
● You’ve passed yourdriving test
● …

Coaching● I noticed you didn’t
speak much in themeeting today● Your presentation
might be improved if
you made it shorter● …

Be explicit about the typeof feedback you want toexchange:
Appreciation, Evaluation or Coaching.

The golden ratio:

5:1

The golden ratio:
5 (positive) : 1 (negative)

Build a workingagreement

How to build a working agreement
1.
2.
3.
4.

Get the team together
Each make a list of concerns or worries you have about working together
Prioritise your list
Share one concern and work as a group to propose a rule or guideline thatwould mitigate that concern
5. Work reﬁne the rule until you have a proposal that the whole team agrees
6. Go to the next person’s concern
7. Repeat until you’re all satisﬁedUncertainty is what we do
Difference is where we learn the mostConﬂict can be respectful
Conﬂict can be creative

Secret #3/4:

Embrace discomfort (苦難)

��

��

��

Learning can beuncomfortable.

And interesting.

Learn early
Even if it hurts

Where there is
conﬂict, there
different
perspectives

Where there aredifferent
perspectives, there’s
an opportunity forlearning

Stay curious!

Diverge
Createoptions

converge

Makedecisions

QUESTION

Be curious
Boredom is a red ﬂag

Secret #4/4:

Seek joy (喜び)“I could say that a joyful
employee is a productive
employee, and that lack of joy ona project is like a canary keelingover in a coal mine: a sign thatsomething big is wrong and you
better pay attention. Maybe
that’s true. I’d certainly like tobelieve it.

But,fundamentally, I
don’t care.

I think joy is its
own excuse.”– Brian Marrick

What isquality?

Gumption (機智)“If you haven't got it there's no way themotorcycle can possibly be ﬁxed.
But if you have got it and know how to keep it
there's absolutely no way in this whole worldthat motorcycle can keep from getting ﬁxed.
It’s bound to happen.”熱意
Enthusiasm
Enthousiasmos
Filled with theos (god)Quality is created
when people areenjoying theirwork.

If you’re notenjoying it, maybe
something iswrong.

The secrets of effective collaboration

1. Find small pieces ⛏2. Be kind 💖
3. Embrace discomfort 🏼🏼🏼🏼4. Seek joy 🎉Thankyou!
https://tinyurl.com/mwjasst22 (slides)
https://twitter.com/mattwynne
matt@cucumber.io

References
http://citconf.com/archive/amsterdam2008/
http://me.andering.com/2008/10/21/as-a-programmer-i-want-to-go-to-a-coders-dojo-so-that-i-can-improve-my-skills/
https://lrug.org/meetings/2009/#september-2009-meetinghttps://seths.blog/2005/03/dont_shave_that/https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/731614.The_Gender_Knot
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42348818-the-book-you-wish-your-parents-had-read
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18114120-thanks-for-the-feedback
https://www.gottman.com/
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/diverge-converge/
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/629.Zen_and_the_Art_of_Motorcycle_Maintenance