Q: How many people do we need to solve this problem?
A: No more than could be fed with two-pizzas.
Amazon has a philosophy about keeping teams small so that they can collaborate better.
“We try to create teams that are no larger than can be fed by two pizzas,” said Bezos. “We call that the two-pizza team rule.”
The smaller the team the better the collaboration. Collaboration is also very important as the software releases are moving faster than ever. And a team’s ability to deliver the software can be a differentiating factor for your organization against your competition.
There are obviously trade-offs. Sure, a small, focused team can move quickly and collaborate better; but they risk losing company wide cohesion.
However, often the solution for solving a problem is less people involved, not more.
Actionable Question: Where am I diluting collaboration and input by involving too many stakeholders?