Team TOPOLOGIES explained to Ted LASSO
TLDR; Every time I need to explain the 4 types of teams from Team Topologies to someone, I end up making an analogy to the different positions in football. Here is the brief explanation of these 4 types of teams with their football equivalents (plus a cheat sheet)
Before Team Topologies
More than 20 years ago, Domain Driven Design (DDD) proposed to empower development teams by grouping coherent business areas. This approach aimed to reduce unnecessary dependencies and create modular architectures. However, DDD did not provide organizational recommendations but rather patterns to survive and perform in various team dependency situations
And then…
It was much later that the book “Team Topologies” by Matthew Skelton and Manuel Pais emerged, focusing on organizational effectiveness in the context of software development. This now reference book in our industry emphasized the cognitive load that teams should not exceed and explored how different types of teams could interact.
4 Types of Teams
When explaining the characteristics of the 4 topologies/types of teams presented by Matthew and Manuel in their work, I also like to draw an analogy with the different roles and positions of a football team.
I’m not comparing the types of teams you find in companies with the types of teams you find in football. No, I rather compare the types of teams found in companies, with the different positions found in a football team.
1- Stream-aligned teams
These are multidisciplinary teams (product and tech) with a mission to develop new capabilities and features. The term “stream” is used here in a generic sense to indicate that their goal is to create and deliver customer or user value continuously. A stream-aligned team does this as quickly as possible but also independently and reliably.
Stream-aligned teams are the primary team type within an organization. The purpose of other team types (see below) is to put them in the best possible conditions.
If we draw an analogy with a football team, these are the forwards, strikers or goal scorers of the organization, meaning they are the ones driving the organization’s success on the field.
2 — Complicated-subsystem teams
These teams are responsible for a complex system, so intricate that it requires substantial expertise (technical, business, or sometimes both) and a level of mastery that would be unreasonable to expect from all other teams in the organization. These teams are often cross-functional, as their complex system is typically used by many other teams (e.g., Identification system, authorization, a highly complex business domain, etc.).
These teams play the role of defensive midfielders in the team. Without their work, the stream-aligned teams would be vulnerable in defense, attempting complex tasks instead of focusing on their role as attackers aiming to score goals.
3 — Enabling teams
These are cross-functional teams that serve other teams, especially the stream-aligned ones, by assisting them in their projects (they can code) or enhancing their skills on a particular subject. Enabling teams often conduct technological watch and innovation that stream-aligned teams may not have the time to prioritize. Stream-aligned teams, deeply focused on delivering features or altering software behavior, may have less time for these aspects. Enabling teams play a coaching role for others.
They are like the midfielders or wingers who shine on the field, providing crosses and assists to the goal scorers of the team.
4 — Platform teams
These cross-functional teams help alleviate the cognitive load of stream-aligned teams by relieving them of some detailed knowledge on low-level subjects. They provide easily consumable services such as provisioning, monitoring, or deployment. Platform teams act as a support system, making it simpler for stream-aligned teams to focus on their primary tasks.
They are like the defenders who prevent the team from conceding goals and, more importantly, provide the solid framework over which the entire team can build its offensive game.
A strong team is a well-balanced team with strength in all positions
Otherwise…
Indeed, a team or corporate culture where everyone sees themselves as goal scorers (neglecting midfield coordination or defensive tasks) would be an unbalanced team, prone to conceding numerous goals and grappling with serious ego issues.
This is why an effective organization is one that is aware of this dynamic, recognizing and appreciating each type of team for their contributions in the right proportion.
You don’t judge a defender by the number of goals they score in a season…
In fact, and this is one of the topics I address in my three-part series on the challenges of collaboration in companies: “Culture and Dependence” (english version is coming soon).
