The Staff Engineer's Path

Team tectonics have similar properties. As domains of responsibility smash against each other, they form an organizational terrain, complete with overlaps and conflict, ridges and chasms. Figure 2-6. Simplified map of Earth’s principal tectonic plates. (adapted from: Scott Nash, public domain, https:// oreil.ly/ UdeNz). Reorganizations can disrupt communication between groups that need to work closely together. Teams that are under a heavy load can entrench and put up barriers. A new senior leader can cause an earthquake that reshapes the landscape overnight.