Benefits and limitations of job rotation in software organizations

Abstract

Context. Job Rotation is an organizational practice whereby individuals are regularly moved among jobs or projects in the same organization. Goal: To identify and discuss evidence about job rotation, in order to understand the use, the benefits, and the limitations of this practice in software organizations. Method: A systematic literature review protocol was used to identify and select empirical studies previously published in the software engineering literature, and then coding techniques were used to analyse and synthesize their findings. Results: This review identified 18 empirical papers presenting evidence of 17 distinct studies about job rotation in software engineering. These studies revealed that in software organizations job rotation has been used to enhance communication, organizational understanding, knowledge exchange, and task variety. However, its use also requires extra effort and sometimes complex planning. Conclusion: The research about job rotation in software engineering is restricted, with only one study focusing on this topic and 16 presenting non-intentional evidence about the theme. Our review synthesized evidence that could inform research and practice. However, due to the specific nature of software development tasks and jobs, empirical evidence is still needed to guide the effective application of job rotation in practice.