Splitting Stream Teams
Splitting Stream Teams refers to the process of dividing the scope of an existing Stream Team into multiple smaller, focused value streams that can be assigned to new Stream Teams.
Goal
The primary goal is to increase the pace of product development by creating more Stream teams while still ensuring that each team is autonomous and can work independently on their assigned value streams.
Context
If your product is successful there will be increasing demands for both supporting the existing product as well as growing the product to meet the needs of the market. This can lead to a situation where the Stream Team is overwhelmed with the demands for their assigned value stream(s). Splitting Stream Teams can help to alleviate this pressure by creating new Stream Teams that can focus on specific areas of the product.
Inputs
| Artifact | Description |
|---|---|
| Product Strategy | The high-level strategic goals and objectives of the product, including where to play and how to win. |
| Bounded Value Streams | Visual representation of the separate value streams, highlighting the processes, boundaries, and key entities. |
| Value Stream Budgets | The allocation of financial resources to each value stream, based on strategic importance and resource requirements. |
| Stream Team Scope | A document outlining the scope of the Stream Team. |
Outputs
| Artifact | Description | Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Updated Bounded Value Streams | Visual representation of the separate value streams, highlighting the processes, boundaries, and key entities. | Clarity on the new value stream boundaries. |
| Updated Value Stream Budgets | The allocation of financial resources to each value stream, based on strategic importance and resource requirements. | Clear budgets to enable the funding of stream teams. |
| Updated Stream Team Scope | A document outlining the scope of the Stream Team. | Clarity on the new and updated team's responsibilities and boundaries. |
| Stream Team Charter | A document outlining the success metrics, goals, roles, relationships and rules for the new Stream Teams. | Clear expectations and guidelines for the new teams. |
Anti-patterns
- Over-Splitting: Creating too many small teams, which can lead to coordination chaos and diluted responsibility.
- Under-Communicating: Not providing enough information about the need for the split leading to confusion and resistance.
- Overlap in Responsibilities: Poor definition of team boundaries can lead to overlaps, causing confusion and inefficiency.