Designing Team Structure That Scales

prog swamp blues, dark goa trance · 4:22

Listen on 93

Lyrics

[Verse 1]
When your startup's just begun, three developers and fun
Code commits and pizza boxes, everyone does everything
But soon you hire number ten, then twenty, now what then?
Chaos creeps through every meeting, who owns what and who's leading?

[Chorus]
Squad formation, clear division
Roles defined with sharp precision
Two pizza teams, not too lean
Conway's law shapes what you've seen
Span control at seven max
Autonomy keeps teams on track

[Verse 2]
Draw the boxes, map the flow, engineering org must grow
Frontend squad and backend crew, platform team and data too
Each domain gets its own space, microservices find their place
Cross-functional by design, product, tech, and test align

[Chorus]
Squad formation, clear division
Roles defined with sharp precision
Two pizza teams, not too lean
Conway's law shapes what you've seen
Span control at seven max
Autonomy keeps teams on track

[Bridge]
Tribes and chapters, guilds that matter
Knowledge sharing, skills don't scatter
Tech leads mentor, architects guide
Staff engineers span teams wide

[Verse 3]
Matrix structure, dotted lines, functional growth as company climbs
Engineering managers care, individual contributors dare
Principal and senior ranks, technical ladders, not just banks
Career paths crystal clear, promotion rubrics engineer

[Chorus]
Squad formation, clear division
Roles defined with sharp precision
Two pizza teams, not too lean
Conway's law shapes what you've seen
Span control at seven max
Autonomy keeps teams on track

[Outro]
Structure scales when teams feel whole
Every person knows their role
Organize to multiply
Engineering velocity flies

← Building Your Hiring Machine | Establishing Engineering Culture Early →