S2:E6 - Handling Unplanned Work and Interruptions in Engineering Teams: The Firefighter Role
S02:E06

S2:E6 - Handling Unplanned Work and Interruptions in Engineering Teams: The Firefighter Role

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Episode description

In this episode, we explore a challenge that plagues every engineering team: the constant stream of interruptions that disrupt our workflows. Drawing from our combined experiences working with dozens of engineering teams, we introduce the concept of the “firefighter” role - a structured approach to managing unplanned work that’s transformed how teams handle interruptions.

We dive into the science behind context switching, examine why solutions often fail, and explore a practical framework that turns interruptions from productivity killers into opportunities for systematic improvement.

Key topics we cover:

  • The true cost of context switching in engineering teams
  • Why common interrupt-handling approaches break down
  • How to implement and rotate the firefighter role
  • Turning interruptions into systematic improvements
  • Measuring success and avoiding common pitfalls

Show Notes:

How engineering teams handle unplanned work - this article captured my thoughts exactly and includes some really good visualisations of the different approaches.

The Cost of Interrupted Work: More Speed and Stress - UC Irvine study

And a FastCompany article about the study.

0:00Welcome and Today's Topic
1:04Unplanned Work and Interrupts in Engineering Teams
2:40The Science of Interruptions
4:06When it comes to concentration - We are our own worst enemy
5:12Moar "Science" of interruptions
6:29We are working faster to cope
7:21The Danger of a Team that is Constantly Interupted
9:02The "Ad-hoc" or early-stage approach
12:03The "Cooldown" or dedicated sprint approach
15:19The Firefighter or the dedicated role approach
16:43Quiet Time = Learning and Prevention Time
17:50Implementation Strategies
20:06Handling Requests
23:37Common Pitfalls to the Dedicated Firefighter Approach
26:58Handovers between firefighters
28:25Firefighters for small teams?
29:47Wrapping Up
30:52Outro