How to balance time in the zone versus open and active communication in the development team?
Our office was recently converted to the "bullpen" style that Tim talked about. To say the least, the people with the software weren't impressed. To get around this, we implemented the following things:
1) Internal department mailing list
2) Internal Dev-team mailing lists
3) Each developer is available through Google Talk for discussion without leaving our desks
4) Headphones mean "it will be important"
5) If you need more than two people to talk, you will find a place to meet so as not to disturb your colleagues.
6) We usually only use email to communicate with customers or provide people with files through attachments.
The result of these actions is that the signal-to-noise ratio in communication is much better since you are not bombarded by email all day long.
One thing we tried to do that doesn't work that well is the "group chat" feature in Google Talk (mostly using Google Talk Contact as a stripped down IRC chat). This may be because many of our developers are young (we have between 3-15 co-ops at university all year round), but "party chat" has become a very apt name for what it was used for.
Boards are scarce where I work, but we were selling a guide to the concept of a room that was to be used for a maximum of 6 people who could breathe and do intense design and development. It has a couple of planks, a DOOR, and all the lights except one that can be turned off so it doesn't look like the fluorescent sun is overhead. This may not be possible in your work environment, but if it is considered a place for intense "zone" time.
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Read "Peopleware"
Offices with doors.
phones that you can turn off.
letters
Common areas used with boards.
There are several stages of development where a lot of collaboration is very productive and at other times when individual focus is important. Plus, people work differently - you don't want to interrupt the people who are doing better when left alone, and you don't want to isolate those who need feedback and help. I would avoid the rules and just make it clear that this is a problem and each developer should provide their own desired environment. The leadership must support him.
HELPFUL meetings are great, but open counters as a working environment for "open communication" is a fantasy that babans or managers who want to keep an eye on their entire staff dream of.
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