Striking a Balance: The Pitfalls of a “Product-Heavy” Organization
With Agile Methodology, there came several different roles that did not exist earlier, Like Scrum Master, Product Owner etc. If the organisation is following Lipstick Agile, with increasing roles and people, teams gradually get divided into internal groups. Two of the most prominent groups are the “Product Team” which comprises “Business Driven Roles” like Product Manager and Product Owner etc. and The “Development Team” which comprises “Technical Driven Roles” Like Tech Lead, Developers and QAs.
These teams, with their unique skill sets and perspectives, work in tandem to bring innovative products to life. However, a common organizational pitfall is leaning too heavily towards one side, where the product team gains significant authority without possessing a deep understanding of the product itself. In this article, we’ll delve into the disadvantages of a product-heavy organization and explore why striking a balance between these two critical functions is essential for success.
1. Misalignment of Priorities
In a product-heavy organization, the product team often sets the agenda. However, when they lack a profound understanding of the product’s technical intricacies, they may inadvertently set priorities that don’t align with the development team’s capabilities or the product’s actual needs. This misalignment can lead to conflicts, inefficiencies, and wasted resources.
Not just the Misalignment of the priorities, the ill-understood product team can frequently shuffle the priorities leaving the development team puzzled and distracted.
2. Lack of Technical Feasibility
A Product-Heavy organisation often shoves the requirements down to the throat of the development team without including them in the initial discussion and feasibility check.
Imagine a scenario where the product team proposes features or changes that sound fantastic in theory but are technically challenging or impossible to implement. This situation can be a recipe for frustration and project delays as the development team grapples with unrealistic expectations.
3. Inefficient Resource Allocation
One of the consequences of a product-heavy approach is that resources might be inefficiently allocated. The product team’s decisions, driven by their limited product knowledge, may result in the development team spending valuable time and effort on tasks that don’t provide substantial value to the product or its users. Manier times, the development team gets disturbed by unnecessary and unprioritised investigation items which doesn’t add any business value to the overall product.
4. Communication Challenges
Effective communication is the lifeblood of any successful project. However, When a product is product-heavy, It happens that the product team communicates the things that they have no clue about. Especially when the product team doesn’t bother to connect with the development team on the subject matter. Most of the issues go back and forth and never get resolved.
5. Increasing backlog but reduced throughput
A primary goal of the product team is to generate a backlog of features for the development team to work on, It may so happen that the ill-informed product team start putting things on backlog understanding which development team may go crazy.
Increased importance on lining up the backlog items, creating n+x sprints, showcasing roadmaps without any technical feasibility or use case etc. can stack up backlog to a certain level where the development team may fail to cope.
6. Slow Decision-Making
Since the product team does not have in-depth knowledge of things on hand, It so happens that those things on hand become the victim of procrastination. And most of the time this happens when some critical decision is required. since the product team lacks a deep understanding of the market and product, It relies on external inputs to make the decision which oftentimes is time-consuming and most of the time, misleading.
7. Reduced Employee Morale
When developers feel their expertise and insights are undervalued, morale can take a nosedive. Disheartened team members are less likely to give their best, which can lead to high turnover rates and create a negative work environment.
In addition, all the other points mentioned here, like communication issues, Misplaced priorities etc. make the development team wonder why they are in such a puzzling situation which gradually frustrates both the product and development team.
8. Risk of Overpromising
Working directly with customers and the operation support team, the product team generally deals with the most critical part of business functions. However, Under pressure to thrive in business or rather in fear of getting out of business, the product team sometimes over-commits many features that may be impossible for the development team to achieve.
A product team without a firm grasp of development constraints might unintentionally overpromise on delivery timelines or product capabilities. This can lead to disappointment among stakeholders and damage the organization’s credibility.
9. Quality, Technical and Innovation Debt
The product-heavy organisations focus more on rapid feature development. Frequent releases and fail-fast approach. However, In pursuit of rapid feature development, they might inadvertently compromise code quality. Without the necessary technical oversight, technical debt can accumulate, making future development more challenging and costly.
Innovation often emerges from the crossroads of technical expertise and creative thinking. A product-heavy approach that sidelines technical knowledge can stifle innovation. The development team, immersed in the nuts and bolts of the product, may be better positioned to identify new technologies or solutions that could enhance it. Without their input, valuable ideas may go unnoticed.
10. False sense of hunky-dory
With all the frustration, and complexities, the development team slowly burns down, but being the product-heavy organisation, rather than addressing the key issues of the development team, most of the time, the product team comforts stakeholders with a completely false sense of hunky-dory whose bubble may eventually get burst, leaving only ashes.
Conclusion
In the complex dance of product development, balance is critical. A product-heavy organization can face a myriad of disadvantages, from misaligned priorities to reduced innovation and employee morale. Organizations must foster collaboration, communication, and mutual respect between their product and development teams to navigate these pitfalls successfully. Additionally, investing in training and knowledge sharing can bridge the gap, ensuring that both sides work harmoniously to deliver exceptional products. By striking the right balance, organizations can set themselves up for success in a competitive marketplace where innovation and efficiency are paramount.
