Business Structure

Welcome back to our Design at Scale — Academy series, focusing on the design practice in a team of one hundred. This article explores how design functions integrate within a business structure from three distinct perspectives: visible organisational charts, hidden networks, and your ability to navigate between them. It addresses how designers can leverage such a structure to their advantage and explore how they can grow their careers.

Every designer works within a specific structure, regardless of team size. In a solo team, the structure is clear. Teams of ten typically focus on delivering a single proposition. However, teams of one hundred often function as a “team of teams,” collaborating to produce complex (or comprehensive) propositions that come together to form a larger product. The business structure ensures that these siloed designs integrate seamlessly, maintaining consistency and coherence across the entire product or service.

Org Charts

Most companies invest resources in identifying and optimising workflows for teams to achieve efficiency and business impact. Organisational charts typically have three levels: C-level leadership, middle management (which can vary in…