- By not taking on additional programmers (spending $$$) Alex is getting more programming hours per dollar spent, which give a longer runway for completion (inherent management and change control issues caused by more than one person)
From my experience, this is a fallacy. Teams operate more efficiently than individuals, because:
- humans have a finite working set, they cannot consider everything, all the time.
- designs are fluid, and humans are fallible. If you make a design error in task A, but don't notice it until you've completed A and moved onto B, having a second programmer start B earlier results in less wasted effort.
- splitting work necessitates modular design leading to more durable code.
- the tools for efficient collaborative working necessitate rigourous development practices; version control, commenting, documentation, etc
- just as not all people are alike, nor is code. Leveraging team members' specialist knowledge saves learning effort.
"Many hands make light work"
"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts"
Etc etc