The Staff Engineer's Path

The shadow org chart helps you understand who the influencers of the group are, and it’s probably not the same as the actual org chart. These influencers are the people you need to convince before a change can happen. The authors identify “connectors” who know people all across the org, and “old-timers” who, regardless of rank or title, wield influence just from being around a long time. These folks are likely to have a good pulse on what can and can’t work, and the people who do have rank and title will likely trust them and rely on their good judgment when making decisions. If you can get their buy-in, you’re making good progress.