Fluid Teams: The Next Evolution of Agile?

Overview
Fluid Teams explores a newer evolution of agile where team membership is dynamic rather than fixed. The article discusses the potential benefits and challenges of allowing engineers and other contributors to move between squads based on current work priorities, skill needs, and personal growth.

Key Takeaways

• Dynamic team composition can increase flexibility and improve resource allocation across projects.
• Frequent changes may create coordination overhead and affect team cohesion.
• Clear communication norms and strong tooling are essential for success.
• Leaders must balance stability for deep work with the agility of fluid assignments.
• Metrics and retrospectives should be adapted to capture the impact of fluid team structures.

Who Would Benefit

• Engineering managers looking to optimize team capacity.
• Technical leaders interested in modern agile practices.
• Product owners who need to adapt quickly to shifting priorities.
• Organizations experimenting with cross-functional collaboration.

Frameworks and Methodologies

• Scrum and Kanban adaptations for fluid team contexts.
• Team Topologies concepts of stream-aligned and enabling teams.
• Continuous Delivery practices that support rapid hand-offs.