(2023-01-19) Cutler Tbm552 Three Product Teams

John Cutler: TBM 5/52: Three Product Teams. This post will explore three popular models for product teams.

Sprint, Story, and Backlog-Centric

This model manifests in the following beliefs:

Developers are at their most valuable when they are writing code. Designers are most valuable when creating prototypes

Potential Pros: Sustainable development

Potential Cons: Negative impact on product outcomes. Customer proxies

Team and Mission-Centric

This model manifests in the following beliefs:

Developers ultimately aren't responsible for the impact of the work

Having an outsized impact as a product team often involves tackling nebulous, poorly understood things and finding a way forward (together).

Potential Pros: Great for tackling nebulous opportunities

Potential Cons: Teamwork is challenging. It requires stable teams, and it may appear unproductive

Engineer-Centric (with “Rockstar” PMs)

Developers function best when on "maker schedule" not "managers schedule." Meetings are costly and largely a waste of time.

Potential Pros: High focus on engineering productivity and empowerment

Potential Cons: Lack of teamwork. Siloed initiatives. Handoffs impact outcomes.

Is one “the best”. No. Am I personally biased toward the team-based model? Yes!