Good technology and good organizational structure are the same conversation
A lot of wisdom can be gained from Melvin Conway's 1968 statement: "Organizations which design systems are constrained to produce designs which are copies of the communication structures of these organizations." A fragmented organization will produce fragmented IT systems. A siloed organization will create siloed systems.
1. The Mirror Effect (Conway's Law)
System Architecture: If teams are siloed (e.g., frontend in one department, backend in another), the software will be brittle, with poor integration between those layers.
Communication Flow: If you want microservices (independent, loosely coupled systems), you must have autonomous, small, cross-functional teams.
2. Technology Shapes Structure
Flatter Hierarchies: Digital tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Asana enable communication to bypass middle management, leading to flatter, more responsive organizational structures.
Remote/Hybrid Work: Modern cloud technology makes physical office levels irrelevant, encouraging a structural shift toward project-based collaboration rather than geographic hierarchy.
3. Structure Enables Technology Adoption
Agile Teams: Companies that organize into cross-functional teams (product, engineering, marketing, design) can innovate faster and adapt to changing technical landscapes.
Reducing Resistance: A rigid, hierarchical structure often impedes digital transformation, while a more organic structure enhances engagement and adoption speed of new technology.
4. Shared Goals: Speed and Efficiency
The Goal is Speed: Both a "good" IT structure (DevOps, microservices) and a "good" organization (flat, agile) aim to increase the velocity of delivery.
Breaking Silos: Aligning team boundaries with the desired system architecture breaks down functional silos, ensuring better communication, faster feedback, and more resilient systems.
If you want your business to design and implement modern, effective, highly cohesive, efficient technologies, then you had better start by ensuring that your business management is modern, effective, highly cohesive, and efficient.