In Agile methodologies, cross-functional teams are highly recommended for product development. A cross-functional team is made up of individuals with different skill sets who can work together to complete all the necessary tasks for product development and testing. This is in contrast to component teams, where different teams work on different parts of a product.
One reason for this is that cross-functional teams are more efficient. By having individuals with different skill sets working together, the team can complete tasks more quickly and with less dependency on others. For example, if a developer can fix a bug that was found during testing, the team doesn't have to wait for another team to complete the task. This results in faster time to market and fewer delays.
Another reason is that cross-functional teams are better at working on one product increment at a time. In component teams, individuals may take on multiple types of work at once, resulting in multiple "works in progress" instead of completed work. By focusing on one product increment at a time, cross-functional teams can deliver a complete product increment more quickly and with fewer delays.
An everyday example that illustrates the benefits of cross-functional teams is shutting down a house before bed. If you focus on locking all the doors in the house, shutting all the blinds, and turning off all the lights in different rooms at the same time, it will take you longer to complete the task than if you focus on each room, locking the door, shutting the blinds, and turning off the lights before moving on to the next room. The same principle applies in product development - by focusing on one product increment at a time, cross-functional teams can deliver a complete product increment more quickly and with fewer delays.
In conclusion, Agile methodologies recommend cross-functional teams for product development of their efficiency and ability to work on one product increment at a time. By focusing on one product increment at a time, cross-functional teams can deliver a complete product increment more quickly and with fewer delays.
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