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Good morning, everyone! Thank you for coming to my talk. This is my first in-person talk at a conference that’s not pre-recorded. So, if I have any hiccups along the way, thank you for bearing with me. I’m assuming that most of you are here because you’re interested in pair programming. Either you're already pair programming and want to improve your habits, or you want to incorporate more pair programming into your mentorship practices.
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I am very excited to share my personal experiences with pair programming, and I hope to send you home feeling more excited about pairing with your mentees and colleagues. You’ll gain tools, tips, and tricks to improve your pairing sessions, making them more productive, educational, and even fun.
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So, first of all, who am I and why should you care what I have to say about pair programming and mentorship? My name is Emily Harber, but some people call me Emmy or Pixie. My pronouns are they/them and she/her.
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I am a semi self-taught boot camp graduate, and I graduated in early 2020. Since then, I have been a developer at Shopify, working on the Docs and API Libraries team. I've worked on interesting projects such as our TypeScript and Ruby libraries, and our developer documentation site, which recently had a nice refresh. If you haven’t checked it out yet, I highly recommend it.
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More recently, I transitioned into providing mentorship for an intern, and it’s been an excellent teaching and learning opportunity for me, as I have been able to pair with her in that capacity. Now, how did I become interested in pair programming? During my boot camp, I spent a lot of time pairing with technical coaches who taught primarily using the Socratic method.
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If you're unfamiliar, the Socratic method involves opening a dialogue through leading questions instead of providing direct answers. This approach helps students come to their own conclusions and solutions. I appreciated this technique because it mirrored real-world scenarios: how we work on code and solve problems, rather than simply spoon-feeding answers.
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About four months after graduating from the program, I was hired as a developer at Shopify, which has a culture that heavily emphasizes pair programming. From the start, it was encouraged during my onboarding sessions.
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When I joined my team, I was paired with a senior developer appointed as my official mentor. He became my go-to person on Slack for questions, silly or serious. Whenever I had coding questions, he offered to jump on a call so we could pair together. He guided me, just as my technical coaches did in boot camp.
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Eventually, we were assigned to the same project, and we began pairing more frequently because there were times I felt stuck or needed an experienced perspective on my work. That pairing process became a regular part of how we completed work, and through it, I benefitted from his expertise.
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I learned to communicate about technical concepts better, grew more confident in my ability to navigate the codebase, and became comfortable with it much faster than I would have otherwise. After a few weeks of consistent pairing, something surprising happened. One day, he reached out to me on Slack, asking for my help on an issue.
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It shocked me to be asked for my opinion by someone with years of experience! Of course, I said yes, we hopped on a call, tried different approaches, and ultimately found a better solution together. This collaboration happened more frequently, and we realized we had naturally transitioned to a peer relationship rather than a mentor-mentee one.
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From then on, I began pairing more often with others on my team, and eventually transitioned into being a mentor myself. I carried this practice into my mentoring approach. I received great feedback from my mentee about how supported she felt during her onboarding process and internship, leading to her eventual full-time position on our team.
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This brings us to the central theme of my talk: pair programming as a form of mentorship. Many people view mentorship as simply sitting down for a conversation once or twice a week, or month, and sometimes treating it like a career-focused therapy session. While personal rapport is vital, there’s immense value in working closely with a more experienced developer to solve complex and interesting problems.
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Through pair programming, you provide your mentee an opportunity to build confidence with your guidance, practice communicating about technical concepts, and explore areas they're less familiar with. Conversely, as a mentor, you share your expertise and knowledge in real-time, supporting your mentee in a more tangible manner than with weekly conversations.
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The benefits of this process extend to the mentor, as well. Your mentee will likely teach you something new, regardless of where they are in their career. Remember that everyone knows something you don’t, which opens the door for role reversals in your interactions.
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This knowledge transfer during pair programming happens in both directions. As a mentor, this offers you a chance to re-solidify your understanding of concepts by viewing them from a new perspective, while your mentee feels supported in their growth and learning.
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I like this quote from Farhan, who advocates strongly for pair programming and has given many talks on the subject: "Pairing is about more than just programming." So, why incorporate pair programming into your mentorship practice? A good first step is shifting your mental model of mentorship to align with what mentorship truly aims to achieve, which is building trust between both parties.
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As a mentor, you want to create a comfortable space for your mentee, making it easy for them to approach you with any questions, no matter how silly they might seem. Show your mentee there are no stupid questions, and create an environment where it’s okay to ask for help—it’s the first step to building trust.
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Everything about communication in this context needs to be intentional, especially in our current remote-focused world. As we work with colleagues from a distance, becoming accustomed to the virtual collaboration environment is crucial. The pair programming practice naturally maintains open lines of communication and creates a constant connection between you and your mentee.
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Pair programming is a high-contact way to build trust quickly. Regular contact through pair programming sessions promotes open communication. If you engage in daily collaboration, you'll naturally become more comfortable with each other. Your mentee will gain confidence while having you there to support them.
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Additionally, through the pairing sessions, your mentee will observe how you work in real-time, making mistakes and exploring your development environment together. This transparency can be incredibly humanizing for someone early in their career who might feel pressure to be perfect.
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Pairing can also help establish healthy work habits. The routine you develop can include professional development and code reviews, allowing you to instill good practices like taking breaks and maintaining focus.
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Not all mentorship relationships happen during onboarding or with early career developers, but there is still immense value in pairing, even with more experienced colleagues. For example, mentoring someone who's mid-level and aiming to become a senior engineer involves tackling increasingly complex concepts where pairing can be beneficial.
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We’ve covered a lot about the advantages of pair programming. Now, let’s talk about how we can implement this practice effectively, especially in a remote setting. Start by making pairing a regular part of your schedule. Use calendars to coordinate with your mentee and build a routine around these sessions.
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Pair as often as your schedules allow; for some, that might mean a few hours each week, while others can pair for hours a day. Whatever it looks like for you, establishing a consistent schedule is essential. If you set an hour for a pairing session, use that time efficiently and try to stick to it.
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You might find it tempting to extend sessions if the focus is good, but without a plan for that extra time you might find it challenging to continue without a solid plan. For longer sessions, consider using tools like the Pomodoro technique to structure work and break times.
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As you set up these sessions, allow for a five-minute buffer at the beginning and end to communicate the requirements and scope of what you’ll be working on, as well as to provide feedback. Feedback is one of the most valuable gifts you can give to colleagues; don’t skip this step.
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Providing feedback could be verbal or written, sharing how the session went—whether it’s about pacing, ideas shared, or areas for improvement. Regardless of how you do it, clear communication is vital.
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It’s also crucial to understand the distinct roles during pair programming sessions. Typically, one person drives—the one typing and implementing what you’re working on—while the other navigates, understanding the requirements and guiding the implementation process.
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As a mentor, your role will often be to navigate the tasks or issues, helping keep your pair focused. Breaking down the problem into manageable tasks helps ensure clarity and direction throughout the pairing session. Tools like Kanban boards or GitHub project boards can assist with organizing the work.
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The driver, typically the mentee, will spend the session actively coding. As a mentor, your job will be to support them through technical decisions while advocating for open dialogue and discussion about implementation.
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Feedback is crucial during this process, much like a live code review. Encourage open discussion, reflecting on what decisions have been made throughout the session. The continual feedback loop elevates the quality of the coding output.
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As your mentee becomes more comfortable and experienced, encourage role switches during your pairing. Both roles—driving and navigating—build confidence and competence for more successful collaboration.
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Let's also touch on tools and accessibility considerations for remote pairing. Many tools, from GitHub to Trello to Zoom and Slack, can enhance your pairing experience, each with its strengths and weaknesses. My favorites include Google Meet or Slack for quick chats and screen sharing.
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However, for more interactive sessions, tools like Tuple, which allows multiple cursors and live collaboration, are hard to beat. Other tools like Google Docs are great for collaborative design discussions.
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While discussing tools, it’s important to address accessibility in pair programming. Different individuals may have unique accessibility needs, including the requirement for closed captioning or various communication methods.
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Before pairing, always ask your colleagues about their accessibility needs and concerns. This proactive step not only promotes awareness but also makes it comfortable for team members to disclose their needs.
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My personal experience has shown me the importance of adjusting setups according to different accessibility needs. Making small but crucial adjustments ensures inclusivity not just in pair programming but throughout our entire workflow.
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The adjustments you make to accommodate someone’s access needs parallel considerations for taking breaks or understanding knowledge levels in a given space. Doing so fosters a collaborative, communicative environment where everyone can be productive.
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As we wrap up, you should now have a solid understanding of the how and why of pair programming, especially in the context of mentorship. However, remember that the value of pair programming extends beyond just mentorship or onboarding.
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Pair programming is applicable at all career stages. The collaboration and context-sharing benefits are universal, significantly enhancing the quality and speed of development work.
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As you advance in your career, the importance of pairing will only increase with the complexity of the problems you're likely to face. Eventually, you will hit the limits of what you can accomplish alone, so leveraging a partner for varied perspectives will be incredibly beneficial.
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In summary, you should pair more often—both with your mentees, mentors, and colleagues. Hopefully, now you feel more confident regarding when, why, and how to do that effectively.
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Thank you so much for being here! You can find me online as the CodePixie. That’s my handle everywhere. Stay safe, take care, and remember to always pair!
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Now, I believe we have some time for questions, so if anyone has any, feel free to ask!
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Yes, to repeat your question for the recording, you were asking about the timing for giving feedback—whether it should happen immediately or after a buffer for comfort. The answer can vary from person to person. Some may prefer immediate feedback, while others might need time to process it.
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Indeed, it’s important to establish open communication about preferences for feedback during your pairing sessions. As for modeling feedback, consistently providing positive feedback is key. Use your one-on-ones to also invite constructive feedback and showcase the feedback loop effectively.
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If someone is feeling shy or less vocal, one approach is to ask open-ended questions rather than yes/no questions. Keep the conversation open to encourage expression and ensure they feel involved. It may also be helpful to build some casual conversation into your pair programming sessions.
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As we approach the end of our time, I’d like to emphasize that maintaining comfort through good communication and a friendly atmosphere will yield the best pairing experiences.
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Thank you all for your excellent questions! Feel free to chat with me further about pair programming, mentorship, or any other topics of interest. Your engagement means a lot!
