samyoul-notes/attachments/2024-10/PROPOSAL - IFT Team Swap Program.md

Objective:

The Team Swap program is designed to increase Core Contributor (CC) mobility, collaboration, knowledge transfer, and team flexibility within the organisation. It allows CCs to temporarily dedicate a portion of their time to another team, promoting deep cross-team learning and fostering stronger interpersonal and inter-organisational connections.

How It Works:

Maintenance and Management:

• Ownership: Managed by an internal Developer Relations or Cross-Team Collaboration Lead. This role will oversee embedding of CCs into other teams, monitor progress, and gather feedback from CCs and team leads.

Logistics:

• By Request: CCs voluntarily request to “team swap” with another team based their on skills and declared interests.
• Time Allocation: Participants dedicate 20-40% of their working hours to the new team, balancing between their current and adopted team responsibilities. This allows for a meaningful contribution without entirely leaving their original projects.
• Duration: Each swap lasts between 3-6 months, allowing enough time for CCs to fully integrate and contribute to the new team while ensuring that disruptions to both teams are minimised.
• Approval: CCs' request to “team swap” is subject to lead approval.

Mechanics:

• Skill and Project Matching: CCs are embedded into with teams based on complementary skills or declared interest. The CC should request a specific team to swap with, or may wish to enquire if any teams match their skills or interest. This ensures effective integration and maximises the benefit for both the CC and the host team.
• Hands-on Contributions: CCs work directly on the new team's projects, gaining hands-on experience in areas they are less familiar with.
• Regular Syncs: CCs will participate in their host team’s regular syncs with to report progress, ask questions, and share insights. CCs are encouraged to share their progress in the host team with their original (home?) teams.

Improvement:

• Feedback Loops: At the end of the swap, both teams provide feedback to the program coordinators on their experience, assessing the swap’s success, and offering suggestions for improvement to refine future swaps.

Cost/Benefit Analysis:

Costs:

1. Initial CC Inefficiency: As CCs adjust to new team environments and projects, there may be a temporary reduction in productivity during the transition phase.
2. Potential CC Incompatibility: Not every CC may seamlessly integrate into a new team or project, which could lead to mismatched expectations or lower efficiency in output.
3. Coordination Time: Both team leads and CCs will need to invest time in planning and coordinating the swap, balancing workload distribution across teams.
4. Management Overhead: Team leads and project leads may need to invest extra time in balancing swapped workloads across teams.

Benefits:

1. Increased CC Mobility: The program allows CCs to diversify their experience and skills, making them more adaptable and capable of contributing to different areas of the organisation.
2. Cross IFT Knowledge Sharing: CCs working across teams facilitate knowledge transfer between different programs, improving organisational learning and preventing silos.
3. Enhanced Team Bonds: CCs from different teams build stronger working relationships, fostering collaboration and a more cohesive organisational culture.
4. Synergy Discovery: Working across teams can help identify new opportunities for collaboration or synergies between previously disconnected projects or teams, potentially leading to innovative solutions.

Difference to Cross-IFT Buddy Program:

See [PROPOSAL] Cross-IFT Buddy Program PROPOSAL Cross-IFT Buddy Program

• Time Commitment:
  • Cross-IFT Buddy Program: CCs meet for 1 hour per week to share knowledge, lasting for 2 months.
  • Team Swap Program: CCs dedicate 20-40% of their time for 3-6 months, fully integrating into another team.
• Purpose:
  • Cross-IFT Buddy Program: Focuses on informal knowledge exchange and building social bonds through casual standups.
  • Team Swap Program: Focuses on deeper involvement, allowing CCs to contribute meaningfully to a different team and gain hands-on experience.
• Impact:
  • Cross-IFT Buddy Program: More lightweight, mainly exposing CCs to roles and responsibilities without direct contributions to other teams.
  • Team Swap Program: Provides direct contributions to the new team and deeper integration, leading to stronger cross-team skill development and collaboration.
• Upfront Cost:
  • Team Swap Program: Requires significantly greater upfront cost due to resource allocation, training, and integration efforts. As a result, it's not intended to be applied universally, but selectively where high-impact collaboration could be fruitful.
• Scope:
  • Cross-IFT Buddy Program: Rotational pairing for broader exposure across teams with a short time frame.
  • Team Swap Program: Long-term project involvement, providing comprehensive learning and potential for lasting organisational impact.
• Outcomes:
  • Cross-IFT Buddy Program: Builds relationships and awareness across teams, with minimal disruption to daily tasks.
  • Team Swap Program: Develops new skills, fosters collaboration, and brings back substantial knowledge for improved team flexibility.

Implementation Plan:

• Pilot Phase: Start with a small, volunteer-driven pilot program. Monitor efficiency, coordination challenges, and outcomes over a defined period (e.g., 3 months).
• Evaluation and Adjustment: Gather feedback from participating CCs and leads to assess the program’s effectiveness and identify areas for improvement.
• Full Rollout: Based on pilot results, adjust the program structure as needed and gradually scale to allow broader participation.