Pattern: Gradual Onboarding
One to three months before the new platform goes live, begin training a couple of teams at a time with a pause between each cohort to incorporate feedback and improve the process/materials
There is pressure from the top, the executives and board, to start using the cloud native platform as soon as possible and pressure from below, from the development teams, to move to cool technology. The company spent a lot of time and money building the new system, and everyone is eager to reap the rewards. Developers want to learn and use new technology.
In This Context
Onboarding too many teams at once will stress the Core Team and reduce its ability to continue improving the platform. Educating people too early, however, willcreate anxiety in the teams and desire to start as soon as possible (and frustration if there is a long wait before the new system is available).
- A team that releases a tool on a large scale with low quality will struggle to improve it
- People have little patience and are eager to apply recent learning.
- If you learn something new, you need to start using that knowledge soon or risk losing it.
- Good people may go to other companies to have a chance to work with the new and exciting technologies.
Therefore
Start small organizational changes early in the cloud native transformation. Prepare materials to onboard other teams and execute it slowly when teams are ready.Continue onboarding the rest of the organization gradually over a period of 3 to 12 months.
- Start educating teams one to three months before onboarding.
- Prepare Developer Starter Packs and all relevant educational materials to simplify the onboarding.
- Onboard two to five teams at a time. Take breaks in between to use their feedback to improve the platform.
- Continuously improve the platform and the onboarding materials based on the feedback from the recently onboarded teams.
Consequently
The Core Team can support teams as they onboard and improve the process as they go. The first few teams onboarded to the platform can help educate and support the teams onboarded later.
- Some teams may not join for one to three years.
- Slower perception of scale.
