Some of the company's staff also teach Agile software development practices through a separate training company, called Boost Agile.
Part of your business involves training people from other companies, but can you tell us about some of the initiatives you have in place to train your own staff?
We deliver software using Agile practices, and four of us here also deliver Agile training as part of our separate training company, Boost Agile. All of our new team members go through the same training we offer as part of our training services in Agile. This includes attending free workshops we run here every Friday afternoon introducing people to Agile practices.
We also work with the apprentice model, whereby new developers work with our more established developers to learn Agile techniques and use them in their everyday work. So, for example, there's an Extreme Programming practice called pair programming where one developer - the driver - sits at the keyboard typing in code while another navigates. The main reason we pair program is that two eyes on code results in higher quality - and less defects. But it's also a great way for someone who is less familiar with the code to work with someone more experienced. Our developers also often code review each other's work and this can be particularly useful for someone who is new or learning a new skill.