Change Management #

Here I document my experience with rolling out Team Topologies in a larger organization.

Notes #

• Before you choose and adapt Team topologies, make sure you have a thorough understanding of problems, challenges and pain points and what works well. Synthesize all this input (maybe through workshops or more 1-1 feedback gathering) and have a clear problem statement, then make sure that all key stakeholders agree on this. Once this aligment and agreement is in placem then you can naturally move into “do we want to solve these”?
• Once you problem is clear and agreed, then consider what options are on the table and for each options evaluate how these options tackle parts of the problem statement (and maybe other problems it introduces).
• Then, Team topologies could be one of the valid options, but don’t be biased to make it win. You want to solve actual problems, not a PR project.
• Use Facilitation methods to run key meetings and workshops, for scale and efficiency.
• Collect Assumptions, Expectations, Hopes and Fears or the right stakeholders at the right time.
• Always keep in mind: Team topologies is an ideal, you then needs to see how it fits in your organization’s culture. Sure, Team topologies itsel is some cultural and mindset shift, but you must shape it in a compliant way.
• Consider: No need to introduce all the team types if they are not necessary at the beginning, it might make things a bit easier at first, but keep an open mind to add the other team types based on practial experience.
• Remember the key change agency framework
• Clarify the shift from being a Delivery Mindset to Delivery Creation Mindset.
  • This requires extra attention on the Business Stakeholders to shift their mindset and in the teams their PO or business team members.
• The roll out should be agile, take in feedback and revision to refine the direction and dream state based on actual learnings.
• Create a “Handbook” which documents
  • The current status
    • The past, present and future (roadmap)
    • Past reports, findinds, actions taken, …
  • The vision/goal (why are we doing this and where are we going?)
    • Explain the setup in practices (Team types, interaction types, …)
  • Stakeholders (+ potential RACI matrix)
  • Support Documents
    • Green and red flags
    • Playbooks (how to take over ownership, how to come squad type x, how to onboard business, …)
    • best practices and tips (how do do collaboration, innersourcing, self service patterns, …)
  • quantify or Qualift success
    • Collect these metrics that measure success and report this in the status.
  • Feedback loops - how to collect feedback on the progress and direction
    • Could be the metrics you mention
    • Retros
    • Health check surveys (e.g. go through green and red flags)
    • Any other feedback collecting mechanisms
    • Define how and when the feedback loops are evaluated and actions points are taken
• Process: Monitor and follow up with teams that transitioned into the model and their learnings
• Monitor: Always try to have baseline metris before the change starts.
• Don’t: Don’t micromanage, mostly create guidance and tools, but every situation is unique and challenging.
• Consider having a change agent that can focus on all of this, but make sure that the right decisions are driven and communicated by the appropiate stakehoders (e.g. leadership).
• Communications: Tailor to the different stakeholders types. Business wants/needs other type of messaging, than the POs, than the actual team members. each also has other communication frequency needs. Make a communication plan to set who, when, how, and what gets communicated to. Try to not over communicate (fatigue) or under communicate (uncertainty/fear)
• Find champions, people that are impacted, sharing their experiences, instead of some “change agent typr” to do all of this communication, success, challenges and pain points should be communicated by all, as it builds an environment of psychological safety.
• When people are very concerned, reach out, 1-1 if possible and really take your time to understand their fears and concerns, not everything needs to be resolved (or at least fast), but you need to know how people are affected.
• Understand that not all will be perfect, communicate clearly a type of pragramatism that is expected, we can’t and don’t want to have everything sorted out in advance, but we want a good strong foundation to start with.
• In such a big initiaitve, group the stakeholders and their roles. Consider always having a “Core group” that is mostly responsible with the organization of the next steps and actions, they are not the key decisions makers, they do more the admin, operational things to make sure the process is progressing.
  • Example
    • Core Group
    • Extended
    • Key Stakeholders
    • Sponsors
    • …