How a Bench Developer Became Our Unexpected MVP

A key dev went on leave, and surprisingly… we didn’t spiral.
Turns out, our “unused” bench had a hidden MVP, we just needed to prep them like one.

It was a Friday evening standup—the kind where no one expected drama. The team was wrapping up, the Product Manager was nodding in approval, and things looked on track.

Until Priya, our lead developer, spoke up: “I just wanted to flag—two weeks from now, I’ll be on leave for a family wedding. It’s already planned, so I’ll be out for a full fortnight.”

Silence.

Not panic but definitely concern. We were heading into the final leg of the sprint. Priya wasn’t just writing code, she was the brain behind a critical module that needed stabilizing.

We’d been here before. Even with advance notice, the result was usually the same: a shaky handover, context missed, and some poor engineer scrambling to make sense of legacy logic. Deadlines would slip. Friction would rise.

The root cause? We had no real backup. One sudden leave or a high-priority task and the entire sprint could derail.

We always treated the bench like a reserve bench. Not warm. Not ready. Just… waiting. But this time, Nikhil—the Project Manager—had a different thought. It came from his Sunday football league. Bench players there trained with the team. They weren’t waiting passively. They played friendly matches. They ran drills. So when a key player stepped out, the sub didn’t panic—they played.

(She just needs two weeks of context.)

“Usko bas 2 hafte ka context chahiye.” 

That’s what they gave her.

Megha had in on every standup. Paired with QA. Attended Priya’s code walkthroughs. Got small tasks, minor refactors, clean-up tickets, a test case or two. In two weeks, she wasn’t perfect but she was confident. She understood the logic.

When Priya left, the team didn’t panic. Megha stepped in—not to take over everything, but enough to keep things steady. A week later, she even shipped a feature enhancement with zero rollback.

After the retrospective, a quiet realization spread:
If this worked once, why couldn’t it work always?

The team took a simple decision:

Going forward, every project would get a shadow bench member

Not for billing. Not for delivery pressure.

Just for preparedness. Someone aware. Someone involved.

Someone who could pick up the slack if needed.

Yes, it meant a bit more planning. A bit more onboarding. But the payoff?

Releases were now going out 5% faster.
The team felt safer—less stress, more stability.
And bench members? They were no longer invisible.

5%

Megha’s quiet entry turned out to be a quiet revolution.

Because just like in sports, a team wins not just because of who starts but because someone from the bench was already ready when the moment came.

If your sprint plan depends on nothing unexpected happening, it’s not a plan—it’s a wish.

Want to future-proof your projects with zero chaos and no added cost? Let’s talk about how to make your bench your best insurance. Mail us at info@wonderbiz.in

Key Takeaway

We aren’t held back by unplanned leaves anymore because someone from the bench is

already up to speed, and the sprint moves forward without a hitch