Parallelization Strategy

This chapter outlines how multiple developers can work on the Implementation Plan simultaneously. It identifies parallelization opportunities, conflict hotspots, and coordination strategies for efficient team collaboration.

Overview

The Implementation Plan consists of 14 steps across 4 phases. Some steps must be sequential due to hard dependencies, while others can be highly parallelized. With a 3-developer team, strategic work distribution can significantly reduce total implementation time.

Step-by-Step Parallelization

Step 2: Foundations (Sequential)

Parallelization level: 1 developer (sequential)

Sequence:

1. PR-2.1 (Schema) → PR-2.2 (PolicyEngine) → PR-2.3 (Concerns)

Why sequential? Each PR builds directly on the previous. The schema must exist before the PolicyEngine can reference it; concerns depend on schema models.

Optional parallel work:

• PR-2.4 (Talk as Registerable) can proceed after PR-2.3 if seminars are in scope for MVP. Talk registration follows the same pattern as Tutorial registration and can be implemented by a second developer in parallel with Tutorial-focused PRs in Step 3.

graph LR
    PR21[PR-2.1<br/>Schema] --> PR22[PR-2.2<br/>PolicyEngine]
    PR22 --> PR23[PR-2.3<br/>Concerns]
    PR23 -.->|optional| PR24[PR-2.4<br/>Talk]

    style PR21 fill:#ff9999
    style PR22 fill:#ff9999
    style PR23 fill:#ff9999
    style PR24 fill:#ffcc99

Step 3: FCFS Mode (High Parallelization)

Parallelization level: Up to 3 developers

Phase 3a: Admin & Student Foundations

Parallel tracks (2 developers):

Prerequisites: PR-2.3 must be merged.

Why parallel? Both PRs implement different controllers (CampaignsController vs UserRegistrationsController) with no shared code paths.

Merge order: Either can merge first; no dependencies between them.

Phase 3b: Student FCFS Flows

Parallel tracks (2 developers):

Prerequisites: PR-3.1 and PR-3.2 merged.

Why parallel? Both implement different branches of UserRegistrationsController#show logic. They share the controller file but modify different action branches based on campaign configuration.

Conflict management:

• Each PR adds distinct routes (register_single, register_multi)
• Shared private methods (ensure_eligible!, enforce_capacity!) can be extracted by the first PR to merge
• Last PR to merge handles route file conflicts (rebase before merge)

Merge strategy: Flexible order; coordinate in daily standup.

graph TD
    PR23[PR-2.3<br/>Concerns]

    subgraph "Phase 3a: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR31[PR-3.1<br/>Admin scaffold]
        PR32[PR-3.2<br/>Student index]
    end

    subgraph "Phase 3b: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR33[PR-3.3<br/>FCFS single]
        PR34[PR-3.4<br/>FCFS multi]
    end

    PR23 --> PR31
    PR23 --> PR32
    PR31 --> PR33
    PR31 --> PR34
    PR32 --> PR33
    PR32 --> PR34

    style PR31 fill:#99ccff
    style PR32 fill:#99ccff
    style PR33 fill:#90ee90
    style PR34 fill:#90ee90

Step 4: Preference-Based (Mixed Parallelization)

Parallelization level: 2-3 developers depending on phase

Phase 4a: UI & Persistence Foundations

Parallel tracks (2 developers):

Prerequisites: Step 3 complete.

Why parallel? PR-4.1 uses the stubbed materialize_allocation! interface from PR-2.3. PR-4.2 implements the real roster persistence. They don't conflict because PR-4.1 only reads the interface.

Optional parallel work:

• Developer C can research solver libraries (MCMF vs CP-SAT) and draft PR-4.3 structure while waiting for PR-4.2 to merge.

Phase 4b: Solver Integration (Draft in Parallel, Merge Sequentially)

Single track (1 developer):

Why sequential merge? The solver's finalize! method calls materialize_allocation!, which writes to roster tables created in PR-4.2. This is a hard dependency for merging.

But drafting can be parallel: Developer can write solver logic with stubbed materialize_allocation! calls while PR-4.2 is in review. Only the final merge requires PR-4.2 to land first.

Parallel work during PR-4.3:

• Developer B: Draft views for PR-4.4 (allocation controller UI)
• Developer C: Write integration test suite for allocation flow

Phase 4c: Allocation UI & Wiring

Parallel tracks (2 developers):

Why parallel? PR-4.4 adds teacher UI for allocation operations. PR-4.5 wires student-facing result views. Minimal overlap.

Merge order: PR-4.4 → PR-4.5 (preferred but flexible).

graph TD
    PR36[PR-3.6<br/>Dashboard]

    subgraph "Phase 4a: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR41[PR-4.1<br/>Student prefs UI]
        PR42[PR-4.2<br/>Roster foundations]
    end

    subgraph "Phase 4b: Sequential (bottleneck)"
        PR43[PR-4.3<br/>Solver integration]
    end

    subgraph "Phase 4c: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR44[PR-4.4<br/>Allocation controller]
        PR45[PR-4.5<br/>Post-allocation wiring]
    end

    PR36 --> PR41
    PR36 --> PR42
    PR42 --> PR43
    PR43 --> PR44
    PR43 --> PR45

    style PR41 fill:#99ccff
    style PR42 fill:#99ccff
    style PR43 fill:#ff9999
    style PR44 fill:#90ee90
    style PR45 fill:#90ee90

Step 5: Roster Maintenance (High Parallelization)

Parallelization level: Up to 3 developers

Phase 5a: Foundation Work

Parallel tracks (2 developers):

Prerequisites: PR-4.2 must be merged (roster infrastructure).

Why parallel? Both read from roster tables but don't modify them. PR-5.1 displays rosters, PR-5.4 counts participants. No write conflicts.

Merge order: Flexible; PR-5.1 should merge first to unblock Phase 5b.

Phase 5b: Operations & Permissions

Parallel tracks (2 developers):

Prerequisites: PR-5.1 merged.

Why parallel? PR-5.2 adds controller actions for edit operations. PR-5.5 adds authorization rules (abilities) and conditional UI. Low conflict risk because they touch different layers.

Merge order: Either can merge first.

Parallel draft work:

• Developer C: Start PR-5.3 draft (candidates panel) while waiting for PR-5.2.

Phase 5c: Candidates Panel

Single track:

graph TD
    PR42[PR-4.2<br/>Roster foundations]

    subgraph "Phase 5a: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR51[PR-5.1<br/>Read-only controller]
        PR54[PR-5.4<br/>Counters + job]
    end

    subgraph "Phase 5b: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR52[PR-5.2<br/>Edit operations]
        PR55[PR-5.5<br/>Permissions]
    end

    PR53[PR-5.3<br/>Candidates panel]

    PR42 --> PR51
    PR42 --> PR54
    PR51 --> PR52
    PR51 --> PR55
    PR52 --> PR53

    style PR51 fill:#99ccff
    style PR54 fill:#99ccff
    style PR52 fill:#90ee90
    style PR55 fill:#90ee90
    style PR53 fill:#90ee90

Conflict Hotspots

When multiple developers work in parallel, watch these files for merge conflicts:

1. Routes (config/routes.rb)

Why conflicts occur: Multiple PRs add new routes to the same namespace.

Mitigation strategies:

• Designate a "routes owner": One developer handles all route-related conflicts during merge.
• Use consistent formatting: Follow Rails conventions for namespace blocks and member/collection actions.
• Rebase frequently: Pull latest main daily before pushing.
• Coordinate merge order: Agree in standup which PR merges first.

Example conflict scenario:

# PR-3.3 adds:
post :register_single

# PR-3.4 adds (same location):
post :register_multi

Resolution: Both lines coexist; just order them consistently.

2. Abilities (app/models/ability.rb)

Why conflicts occur: Multiple PRs add authorization rules to the same file or concern.

Mitigation strategies:

• Split into concerns: Create app/abilities/registration_ability.rb and app/abilities/roster_ability.rb to separate workstreams.
• Use section comments: Clearly mark sections like # Registration — FCFS mode
• Group related rules: Keep all rules for one controller together.

Recommended structure:

# app/models/ability.rb
class Ability
  include CanCan::Ability
  include RegistrationAbility
  include RosterAbility
  include AssessmentAbility
  # ...
end

3. Dashboard Components

Why conflicts occur: Dashboard widgets are now consolidated in Step 10 (Dashboard Partial) rather than added incrementally.

Mitigation strategies:

• Use separate component files: Each widget is its own component (OpenRegistrationsCard, AllocationResultsCard, ManageRostersCard).
• Feature flag each widget: Enables independent testing without UI conflicts.
• Coordinate in Step 10: Multiple developers can work on different widgets in parallel during Step 10 implementation.

4. UserRegistrationsController

Why conflicts occur: PRs 3.3 and 3.4 both modify the same controller.

Mitigation strategies:

• Keep actions separate: Each PR implements distinct actions or branches (if campaign.single_item? vs if campaign.multi_item?)
• Extract shared methods early: The first PR to merge should extract helpers like ensure_eligible!, enforce_capacity!, build_registration_context.
• Coordinate merge order: Agree which PR merges first; others rebase and adopt the extracted methods.

Example of method extraction:

# First PR to merge extracts:
private

def ensure_eligible!(campaign)
  result = Registration::PolicyEngine.call(campaign, current_user)
  redirect_to(...) unless result.pass?
end

Later PRs reuse this method instead of duplicating logic.

Steps 6-9: Grading & Assessments

Step 6: Grading Foundations (Sequential)

Parallelization level: 1 developer

Sequence: PR-6.1 (Assessment schema) → PR-6.2 (Grade scheme schema)

Why sequential? Both are purely additive migrations. Can be combined into a single PR or done sequentially. Low complexity.

Step 7: Assessments (Sequential)

Parallelization level: 1 developer

Sequence: PR-7.1 (Migration) → PR-7.2 (Controllers)

Why sequential? Controllers depend on migrated Assessment records existing. Migration must complete first.

Step 8: Assignment Grading (High Parallelization)

Parallelization level: Up to 3 developers

Parallel tracks:

Prerequisites: Step 7 complete.

Why parallel? PR-8.1 is pure service logic (no UI). PR-8.2 builds UI that calls the service (can use doubles initially). PR-8.3 adds toggle actions to existing AssessmentsController.

Merge order: PR-8.1 → PR-8.2 → PR-8.3 (preferred). PR-8.2 can draft with stubbed service calls while PR-8.1 is in review.

graph TD
    PR71[PR-7.1/7.2<br/>Assessments]

    subgraph "Phase 8: Parallel (3 devs)"
        PR81[PR-8.1<br/>Grading service]
        PR82[PR-8.2<br/>Grading UI]
        PR83[PR-8.3<br/>Publish/unpublish]
    end

    PR71 --> PR81
    PR71 --> PR82
    PR71 --> PR83
    PR81 --> PR82
    PR82 --> PR83

    style PR81 fill:#90ee90
    style PR82 fill:#90ee90
    style PR83 fill:#90ee90

Step 9: Activity Tracking (Moderate Parallelization)

Parallelization level: 2 developers

Parallel tracks:

Prerequisites: Step 8 complete.

Why parallel? PR-9.1 creates model and migrations. PR-9.2 builds UI (can draft with stubbed model initially).

Merge order: PR-9.1 → PR-9.2 (PR-9.2 requires model to exist).

graph TD
    PR83[PR-8.3<br/>Publish/unpublish]

    subgraph "Phase 9: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR91[PR-9.1<br/>Achievement model]
        PR92[PR-9.2<br/>Achievement marking UI]
    end

    PR83 --> PR91
    PR83 --> PR92
    PR91 --> PR92

    style PR91 fill:#99ccff
    style PR92 fill:#99ccff

Step 10: Dashboard (Partial) - High Parallelization

Parallelization level: Up to 2 developers

Parallel tracks:

Prerequisites: Steps 2-9 complete.

Why parallel? Completely separate controllers and views. Student dashboard shows registration/grades from student perspective. Teacher dashboard shows campaigns/rosters/grading from admin perspective.

Merge order: Flexible (no dependencies).

graph TD
    PR92[PR-9.2<br/>Achievement marking]

    subgraph "Phase 10: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR101[PR-10.1<br/>Student dashboard]
        PR102[PR-10.2<br/>Teacher dashboard]
    end

    PR92 --> PR101
    PR92 --> PR102

    style PR101 fill:#90ee90
    style PR102 fill:#90ee90

Steps 11-13: Student Performance & Exam Registration

Step 11: Student Performance System (Very High Parallelization)

Parallelization level: Up to 4 developers

Phase 11a: Schema & Services (3 developers):

Prerequisites: Step 9 complete (needs assessment data).

Why parallel? PR-11.2 and PR-11.3 can be drafted while PR-11.1 is in review using local schema definitions. Merge after PR-11.1 lands.

Phase 11b: Controllers (3 developers):

Prerequisites: PR-11.1, PR-11.2, PR-11.3 merged.

Why parallel? Three independent controllers with distinct purposes. Minimal shared code.

Merge order: Flexible (PR-11.4 can merge first as it's simplest).

graph TD
    PR102[PR-10.2<br/>Teacher dashboard]

    subgraph "Phase 11a: Schema & Services (3 devs)"
        PR111[PR-11.1<br/>Performance schema]
        PR112[PR-11.2<br/>Computation service]
        PR113[PR-11.3<br/>Evaluator]
    end

    subgraph "Phase 11b: Controllers (3 devs)"
        PR114[PR-11.4<br/>Records controller]
        PR115[PR-11.5<br/>Certifications controller]
        PR116[PR-11.6<br/>Evaluator controller]
    end

    PR102 --> PR111
    PR102 --> PR112
    PR102 --> PR113
    PR111 --> PR112
    PR111 --> PR113
    PR112 --> PR114
    PR112 --> PR115
    PR112 --> PR116
    PR113 --> PR114
    PR113 --> PR115
    PR113 --> PR116

    style PR111 fill:#90ee90
    style PR112 fill:#90ee90
    style PR113 fill:#90ee90
    style PR114 fill:#90ee90
    style PR115 fill:#90ee90
    style PR116 fill:#90ee90

Step 12: Exam Registration (Moderate Parallelization)

Parallelization level: Up to 3 developers

Parallel tracks:

Prerequisites: Step 11 complete.

Why parallel? PR-12.1 creates Exam model. PR-12.2 adds policy kind to existing PolicyEngine. PR-12.3 can draft pre-flight logic (merges after PR-12.1 and PR-12.2).

Sequential continuation:

graph TD
    PR116[PR-11.6<br/>Evaluator controller]

    subgraph "Phase 12a: Parallel (3 devs)"
        PR121[PR-12.1<br/>Exam model]
        PR122[PR-12.2<br/>LP policy]
        PR123[PR-12.3<br/>Pre-flight checks]
    end

    subgraph "Phase 12b: Sequential"
        PR124[PR-12.4<br/>Exam FCFS registration]
        PR125[PR-12.5<br/>Grade scheme application]
    end

    PR116 --> PR121
    PR116 --> PR122
    PR116 --> PR123
    PR121 --> PR123
    PR122 --> PR123
    PR123 --> PR124
    PR124 --> PR125

    style PR121 fill:#99ccff
    style PR122 fill:#99ccff
    style PR123 fill:#99ccff
    style PR124 fill:#ff9999
    style PR125 fill:#ff9999

Step 13: Dashboard Extension (Low Parallelization)

Parallelization level: 2 developers

Parallel tracks:

Prerequisites: Steps 11-12 complete.

Why parallel? Extends existing dashboards from Step 10 with new widgets. Student and teacher dashboards are independent.

Merge order: Flexible.

graph TD
    PR125[PR-12.5<br/>Grade scheme]

    subgraph "Phase 13: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR131[PR-13.1<br/>Student dashboard ext]
        PR132[PR-13.2<br/>Teacher dashboard ext]
    end

    PR125 --> PR131
    PR125 --> PR132

    style PR131 fill:#90ee90
    style PR132 fill:#90ee90

Step 14: Quality & Hardening (Moderate Parallelization)

Parallelization level: 2 developers

Parallel tracks:

Prerequisites: Steps 11-13 complete.

Why parallel? PR-14.1 creates background jobs. PR-14.2 builds admin UI that displays job results (can use stubbed data initially).

Merge order: PR-14.1 → PR-14.2 (PR-14.2 displays job results).

graph TD
    PR132[PR-13.2<br/>Teacher dashboard ext]

    subgraph "Phase 14: Parallel (2 devs)"
        PR141[PR-14.1<br/>Background jobs]
        PR142[PR-14.2<br/>Admin reporting]
    end

    PR132 --> PR141
    PR132 --> PR142
    PR141 --> PR142

    style PR141 fill:#99ccff
    style PR142 fill:#99ccff

Parallelization Summary

Key insights:

• High parallelization: Steps 3, 5, 8, 10, 11 (2-4 developers)
• Moderate parallelization: Steps 9, 12, 13, 14 (2 developers)
• Sequential bottlenecks: Steps 2, 4 (PR-4.3), 6, 7
• Overall: With 3-4 developers, Steps 3-5 can complete in ~60% of sequential time. Steps 6-14 add similar parallelization gains.

Key insight: Steps 3, 5, 8, 10, and 11 are highly parallelizable. Steps 4, 6-7, and 12-14 have bottlenecks but allow parallelization before and after.

graph LR
    subgraph "Legend"
        SEQ[Sequential - Must be done in order]
        PAR2[Parallel - 2 developers can work together]
        PAR3[Parallel - 3 developers can work together]
        BOTTLE[Bottleneck - Blocks other work]
    end

    style SEQ fill:#ff9999
    style PAR2 fill:#99ccff
    style PAR3 fill:#90ee90
    style BOTTLE fill:#ff6666

flowchart TD
    Start([Start Implementation])

    Step2{{"Step 2: Foundations<br/>(Sequential - 1 dev)"}}
    Step3{{"Step 3: FCFS Mode<br/>(Parallel - up to 2 devs)"}}
    Step4{{"Step 4: Preference-Based<br/>(Mixed - 2 devs)"}}
    Step4b{{"PR-4.3: Solver<br/>(Bottleneck)"}}
    Step5{{"Step 5: Roster Maintenance<br/>(Parallel - up to 2 devs)"}}
    Step6{{"Step 6-7: Grading Foundations<br/>(Sequential - 1 dev)"}}
    Step8{{"Step 8: Assignment Grading<br/>(Parallel - up to 3 devs)"}}
    Step9{{"Step 9: Participation<br/>(Parallel - 2 devs)"}}
    Step10{{"Step 10: Dashboard Partial<br/>(Parallel - 2 devs)"}}
    Step11{{"Step 11: Student Performance<br/>(Parallel - up to 4 devs)"}}
    Step12{{"Step 12: Exam Registration<br/>(Mixed - 2-3 devs)"}}
    Step13{{"Step 13: Dashboard Extension<br/>(Parallel - 2 devs)"}}
    Step14{{"Step 14: Quality & Hardening<br/>(Parallel - 2 devs)"}}
    Done([Implementation Complete])

    Start --> Step2
    Step2 --> Step3
    Step3 -->|High parallelization| Step4
    Step4 -->|Phase 4a-4b| Step4b
    Step4b -->|Phase 4c| Step5
    Step5 -->|High parallelization| Step6
    Step6 --> Step8
    Step8 -->|High parallelization| Step9
    Step9 --> Step10
    Step10 -->|High parallelization| Step11
    Step11 -->|Very high parallelization| Step12
    Step12 --> Step13
    Step13 --> Step14
    Step14 --> Done

    style Step2 fill:#ff9999
    style Step3 fill:#90ee90
    style Step4 fill:#99ccff
    style Step4b fill:#ff6666
    style Step5 fill:#90ee90
    style Step6 fill:#ff9999
    style Step8 fill:#90ee90
    style Step9 fill:#99ccff
    style Step10 fill:#90ee90
    style Step11 fill:#90ee90
    style Step12 fill:#99ccff
    style Step13 fill:#90ee90
    style Step14 fill:#99ccff