Scaling & Dependencies
Everything Blocks Everything Else
Every Team Is Waiting on Every Other Team.
Nothing moves independently. Every feature requires coordination across 5 teams. Planning sessions are dependency mapping exercises. Teams spend more time in meetings than building. The organization is technically "scaled" but slower than when it was small.
- Every story requires work from 3+ teams to complete
- Teams blocked waiting for other teams. Weeks of delay
- PI planning takes a full week and produces a dependency board from hell
- More coordination meetings than working time
You're Not Imagining It
If any of these sound familiar, you've found the right place.
Every story requires work from 3+ teams to complete
Teams blocked waiting for other teams. Weeks of delay
PI planning takes a full week and produces a dependency board from hell
More coordination meetings than working time
Adding teams made delivery slower, not faster
Integration is painful. Everyone's code conflicts
Why Dependencies Multiply
Dependencies are usually an architecture problem wearing an org chart disguise. When systems are tightly coupled, teams are tightly coupled. You can't have independent teams if the code won't let them work independently.
The second cause: teams organized by function instead of value. When frontend, backend, and database are separate teams, every feature requires all three. You've built dependency into the structure.
Scaling frameworks can make this worse if applied mechanically. SAFe trains, for example, can institutionalize dependencies instead of eliminating them.
This Is Common
Teams That Can Actually Ship
Break the dependency chains so teams can deliver independently instead of waiting on each other.
Teams complete work without waiting weeks for other teams
Planning becomes simpler, fewer coordination meetings
Changes don't break everything, one team can ship without affecting others
Scaling works because teams aren't tangled together
How We Break Dependency Chains
We restructure teams and systems so work can flow without waiting.
Map the Dependencies
We visualize how work actually flows and where it gets stuck. Which dependencies are structural? Which are habitual? You can't fix what you can't see.
Restructure Teams Around Products
We reorganize teams so each one can build and ship a complete feature, frontend, backend, testing, all in one team. No more handing work between teams.
Untangle the Code
We work with your architects to separate systems so teams can change their code without breaking everyone else's. Clear boundaries between systems.
Keep Coordination Simple
Some dependencies can't be eliminated. For those, we create quick sync-ups that don't require week-long planning ceremonies.
What Happens When Dependencies Break
Teams ship independently
Work flows without waiting. Teams complete features in days instead of coordinating for weeks.
Planning simplifies
PI planning goes from a week to a day, or disappears entirely for autonomous teams.
"Their coaching enabled our teams to pivot and re-prioritize work in a quick and organized manner." - Katie Morris, Southwest Airlines
Adding teams actually scales
More teams means more throughput instead of more coordination overhead.
Deployments stop being scary
When teams are independent, one team's changes don't break another team's work. Ship with confidence.
See How We Fixed It
Real organizations that overcame this challenge with our help.
Southwest Tech Ops
Tech Ops Technology, managing 55 critical applications for aircraft readiness and safety, transformed 300+ team members using SAFe and Path to Agility to dramatically improve predictability and delivery.
Southwest Airlines IT
Southwest Airlines transformed their Crew IT department of 250 people across 25 teams, saving over $5 million in just two months through improved agility and faster delivery.
Ready to Break Free?
Tell us about the dependencies. We'll help you identify which can be eliminated and how. 30 minutes, no pitch.
Break Dependencies