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Becoming a cross-functional product team


Building great software products is a team sport – which means it ain't easy. Anyone who has tried to align cross-functional teams around the "what"s and "why"s knows just how hard it can be.

Here's a hand-picked collection of plays that'll help build a shared understanding of your team's goals and keep momentum high so your team is happier, healthier, and more effective.

Blocks forming a square around a yellow circle

Top 4 plays for project management

These plays help keep your team focused, your stakeholders informed, and your project moving right along.

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5 Whys

Typically, this technique is used for root-cause analysis after a problem is discovered. But! Cross-functional product teams can use it to dig into the problem space around a feature they're building or customer pain point they're trying to solve.

journey mapping

Journey Mapping

At the start of this exercise, your team will problem or project from a designer's perspective, a developer's perspective, a tester's perspective, etc. By the end, you'll all be seeing it from the customer's perspective.

Team with signal illustration

Demo Trust

Your team members have different skills, priorities, and problem-solving styles. Which is great... until you can't decide which direction to go. Use this play to get high-level guidance from leadership.

Different waves of communication

Project Poster

Cross-functional projects are more complex than solo projects. Use this play to think through the problem you're solving, strategic fit, risks, assumptions, and possible solutions.

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Project Team Health Monitor

Use the Health Monitor to self-assess against eight attributes common amongst high-performing teams, then track your progress over time.

Gather your project team for an honest discussion about how you're working together.

guided health monitor

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