When defining and measuring productivity, it is crucial to ask individuals what productivity means to them and for whom the measurement is intended. Understanding the purpose behind measuring productivity is essential, whether it is about gaining insights, making improvements, or assessing the impact of interventions. It is important to recognize that changes aimed at improving one aspect of productivity may have unintended consequences on other dimensions. For example, allowing developers to work without interruptions may not necessarily enhance their satisfaction or the quality of code if it results in boredom or lack of communication among team members.
This week's guest is Dr. Margaret-Anne Storey, who goes by the name Peggy. Peggy is a professor of Computer Science at the University of Victoria, the Chief Scientist at DX, and co-author of the SPACE Framework, which is the topic of focus in this episode. Today’s conversation discusses what the SPACE framework is and what went into developing the metrics and categories. Peggy also shares where she sees this line of research heading next.
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Discussion points:
(1:29) Peggy’s background
(4:01) What the SPACE framework is
(5:55) Why the researchers came together for this paper
(7:27) The process of writing this paper
(9:52) How the SPACE categories and acronym emerged
(11:50) The authors’ intention for how this framework would be received
(13:26) Finding a definition for what developer productivity is
(17:08) The metrics included in the SPACE framework
(24:48) How SPACE is different from DORA
(26:17) Why lines of code and number of pull requests were included as example metrics
(27:14) What Peggy is thinking about next
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Mentions and links:
Where to find Peggy: Twitter, Website
The SPACE of Developer Productivity: There’s more to it than you think by Nicole Forsgren, Margaret-Anne Storey, Chandra Madilla, Thomas Zimmerman, Brian Houck, and Jenna Butler
Abi’s summary of the SPACE paper
Peggy’s talk, What Does Productivity Actually Mean for Developers?