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Cross Functional Teams with Mobile (Android & IOS) + Web Developers

Last post 06:03 pm October 2, 2023 by RAJDEEP PAUL
7 replies
07:12 pm July 26, 2021

Hi everyone,

A few months ago, we used to work with separate teams for Mobile and Web development.



Once the Product is the same, the company decided to put it together in one unique team, so now, I have teams composed by the following skills: (2 Android Devs, 2 iOS Devs, 3 Frontend/Backend Web Devs, 1 Designer, 1 Web QA, 1 Mobile QA) + a PO and a Scrum Master == 10 people.

Is this setup a common way other companies does, or usually, companies uses one separate team for IOS/Android and another one team for Web Dev?

Having this mixed skills teams, also let me have other problems, for example, if one of them (android, ios or web) have some problem, the others can't help to save the currrent sprint.

 

Thanks for support friends!


07:17 pm July 26, 2021

Just to explaing, I do not considered the PO and SM in the count, because they are shared with other teams.


02:20 am July 27, 2021

the company decided to put it together in one unique team, 

Why is the company deciding how to organize teams? Shouldn't management be encouraging these skilled professionals to find the best way of self-organizing themselves?


04:00 pm July 27, 2021

Does the team think this is an efficient method of organization?  What impediments are they seeing? What benefits do they see?

Since your "company decided" has anyone stated what benefits were expected?  What problems were being solved? Who raised those problems?  

Your post provokes more questions than answers for me. 

Is this setup a common way other companies does, or usually, companies uses one separate team for IOS/Android and another one team for Web Dev?

The answer to that question is "it depends on the company".  I've worked in companies that worked in both of these ways at the same time because it was left up to the Scrum Teams to decide the best manner to organize.  For one Product, they would organize in separate teams while with other Products it made more sense to be a single team.  I have never seen "the perfect way". 


12:11 pm June 22, 2022

Hi, I'm currently in the same situation. What did you decide to do? Is there anything you would have done different?


09:08 am September 26, 2023

Hello All, I am also debating this in my context. Can someone share some pros and cons of having both org structures: 

1. if we have scrum team responsible for both mobile and web development

2. if we have separate scrum teams for mobile and web development


12:16 pm September 27, 2023

I would facilitate a meeting with the team and ask them to lay out the pros/cons and let them decide the best way to organize. Some questions that might have to be discussed:

  • Are there already two teams within a team with their own focus on mobile and web, making it hard for the team to have one Sprint Goal? Does this impact focus?
  • Is there enough budget to support two separate cross-functional mobile and web teams?
  • Would some people have to be part of both teams? Context switching between teams will most likely be a con, and I am sure there would be other negatives to this approach. 
  • Are there common components shared between mobile and web? Would this create dependencies?
  • Would there be two products, each having its own Product Backlog?

All the best.


04:59 am September 30, 2023

Thanks Chris for your response. You have given me some ideas to pursue the situation.


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