I admit it: I'm still watching TV. Nowadays, although I watch on demand and am no longer tied to the TV guide, I do spend a few hours of my free time watching TV programs, usually series or TV films, almost passively.
In the early 2000s, for example, I was an enthusiastic fan of the series CSI. Not only because of the colorful images and the outstanding soundtrack ("Whooo are you..."), but also because of the teams that repeatedly solved the most difficult cases, which often contrasted strongly with my own experiences in product development and provided a nice balance.
Well, doing sport would certainly have been healthier!
What made these teams so successful? I would summarize it simply as follows:
- perfectly practiced routine tasks (rarely was a sample tested badly)
- open, timely communication based on mutual trust (at all times - day and night)
- strong leadership that made all the important decisions, but was also responsive to individual team members
Are these qualities that would also help a product development team? Yes, but certainly!
Especially in small development teams that have a clear task, such a constellation around a strong leader would always deliver good results. That's why I have long said that product development is not a place for democratic discussions, but a team sport! There has to be someone who leads, which is why I don't believe in the use of holacracy in product development.
We are now a few years further down the line and have experienced various forms of organization in product development, especially agile. I therefore revise my statement slightly and say that the CSI model should not be used for larger teams, but rather the model of the modern soccer team. We still need very well-practiced routine tasks (ball reception, standard situations, etc.), very open, timely communication (for example to avoid offside situations) and certainly also strong leadership.
But when it comes to leadership, a soccer team runs very differently to a CSI team, doesn't it? There is a coach who adapts the team's line-up and strategy to the situation from the sidelines with a time lag. But there is also a captain in the team, as a link between the coach and the team.
Apart from that, all positions in a football team are crucial to the game and equally important. If there is a problem in defense, there will be no victory. If it doesn't work on the right side, the left side can play as well as it wants.
The important thing is that the team reacts independently to changing conditions and uses situations to achieve the goal.
What does your product development team look like, a CSI team or a soccer team?
These opinions are my own, personal ones and not "the opinion" of a company.
