A framework (Skelton & Pais) for structuring engineering/product teams to minimize cognitive load and cross-team dependencies, cited by Cagan as one of the most important and technically complex topics in product-org design. Concerned with team types (stream-aligned, platform, enabling, complicated-subsystem) and the interaction modes between them.
Related to Org-Architecture Mirroring (Squads ↔ Microservices) and Cross-Team Dependency Pre-Alignment Cycle as tools for the same underlying problem: dependency-driven friction between teams.
Use as the lens for deciding how tooling (e.g., generative AI) should reshape team boundaries and reduce dependency-driven cognitive load — a new capability doesn't just add work, it can change which team should own what.
Из тем: The Product Operating Model