The Bullpen

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I have always liked baseball, though I was never much of a player, I enjoyed the game, the skill it takes to hit a fastball, to throw a perfect game, to steal a base or two, or even to complete a triple play. The area that is the most fascinating to me is the bullpen. The area where the pitching staff warms up prior to going into the game, and where they loosen up, it is an area for preparation. You can tell what a team on defense is going to do in the near future by watching the bullpen.

An acquaintance of mine, works as a software tester in a company where there is a different meaning for the bullpen. You see, they used to live in cubical world where one to two people worked in an artificial room with six foot walls in aisles off the main hallway – without these artificial walls it would be a open area where you could see all the desk from one end of the room to the other. You could hold team meetings if everyone stood on their desk at the same time and began to talk. Everyone would look like gophers popping up out of their holes, got the picture. Now for years they worked in this environment, and they were able to get the job done. But for some reason the powers in higher pay grades than this acquaintance of mine decided that all members of each QC teams would have their walls removed, so they could work together as a team. Great idea, the walls disappeared, and the bullpen was born.

How does this bullpen work in an era of trust, independence, and openness? In baseball the bullpen allows the pitcher and catcher to work together creating and special connection, and building trust between the two team members. In this particular bullpen the team lead keeps a watchful eye on the activity of the team, ensuring that not a wasted moment goes by, and ensuring that the team member remain on task. When ever a team member sneezes, coughs, or farts it does not go unnoticed; the team lead knows when each team member leaves and when they return, making mental (if not actual) notes of the departures and returns. Yes, the team led controls of the activities of the team, testing related or not.

This environment has had a side effect which is the opposite to the trend in most software development companies. The environment in the industry is towards more communication and openness between all departments involved in the producing a quality product. The increase in communication and openness between the departments is considered to be the key to their success. Yet in this bullpen conversations are spoken in hushed voices and whispers showing that morale has slipped as the eyes of big brother are constantly upon the team. It is felt that the team has not left kindergartner, where permission is required even to visit the little room down the hall.

I may be exaggerating this a bit but I can guarantee that I would feel this way if my boss was in a position to watch my every move. I am an independent type of worker. I work well once given an assignment and will complete the task without constant checking. To have someone in a physical position to document my every move only brings out the rebel in me.

I believe that the reason for the bullpen is to give developers and testers an opportunity to work closely together, so that development and testing efforts can move along quickly; I have even suggested this where I manage a group of testers, the testers still live in cubical world. But they understand that one day they may be put in the bullpen next to a developer, where they can develop the relationship, and teamwork they will need to deliver a quality product quickly - without the constant eye of big brother monitoring their every move.
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