Conway’s Law: Why Your Product is Just a Mirror of Your Internal Politics
The Famous Sketch In 2011, an engineer named Manu Cornet drew a famous set of cartoons depicting the organizational charts of big tech companies. Apple: A tiny red dot (Jobs) connected to everything. (Result: Highly integrated, singular vision). Microsoft: Distinct pyramids pointing guns at each other. (Result: Windows vs. Office vs. Xbox felt like warring nations). Amazon: Strict, hierarchical pyramids. (Result: A platform of strictly defined, modular services). These drawings were funny because they were true. They were visual proof of Conway’s Law. ...