oRganization: Design patterns for internal packages

workflow
pkgdev
rstats
An overview of the unique design challenges and opportunities when building R packages for use inside of a single organization versus open-source. By using the jobs-to-be-done framework, this talk explores how internal packages can be better teammates by following specific design patterns for API design, testing, documentaiton, and more.
Published

January 21, 2021

Many case studies demonstrate the benefits of organizations developing internal R packages. But how do you move your organization from individual internal packages to a coherent internal ecosystem?

In this talk, I analyze how internal packages differ from open-source, publicly available packages in their ideal level of abstraction and their understanding of specific user needs. By applying the jobs-to-be-done framework, I envision internal packages as teammates annd consider the many roles they can play, from unblocking IT challenges to democratizing tribal knowledge.

To help our team of packages succeed, we explore a wide variety of concrete design choices that developers of internal packages may make – spanning functions, documentation, testing, and more.