The value of communication

We've rearranged our development environment after we finished wrapping up development on Track Changes to help move the team more towards XP. Previously, all the developers were in an area with a desk running around the perimeter of the area. Each developer was spaced out equally around the rim of the room and each developer sat facing the wall. This situation is not unlike some cubicle set ups I've work in at other companies (though at the other companies the developers were a bit closer together, but not that much more).

From the old location we moved to a smaller space that has a large enough table that we can comfortably fit developers down either side of the table plus a small desk area running along one of the walls of the area. Two of sit along the wall, while the rest of the team is on the table. The main reason for moving to the new area was to give us comfortable room for some pairing stations. But, the biggest benefit in the moves is that our communication within the team has dramatically increased.

With all the developers facing the wall, we tended not to interrupt one another unless we definitely needed some assistance. But now the development area, at times, is just one big running comversation about the numerous things we are trying to accomplish during the day.

Sitting together is one thing, but it's important that you sit together in a way that fosters the sort of conversations we are experiencing. Don't sit facing in a direction that you can't see anyone. Make sure that you developers can easily see each other and make eye contact. It just makes the process that much more humane.