From Renting Resources to Driving Strategy: A Shift Toward Business-Oriented R&D by Mauro Sacchi

This video features Mauro Sacchi discussing a significant change initiative within his company. The focus is on transitioning product development to be more aligned with business objectives and customer value. The Org Topologies mapping method is used as a tool to visualize and guide this organizational transformation.

Company and Product Context:

• The company is a large, 190-year-old multinational corporation operating in the maritime and energy sectors, transforming energy into power [03:09, 03:47]. It heavily invests in R&D, viewing itself as an innovator [08:00].

• Their digital products are integrated into their lifecycle business, primarily related to engine technology [07:20]. The product architecture spans industrial equipment with automation, edge solutions, and cloud-based solutions [10:00]. Different user needs (on-site vs. office-based) shape solution design and deployment [13:12].

The Transformation Journey:

• Initial State: The organization began with a resource topology, characterized by "doers" and "directing" archetypes [16:42]. Challenges included software engineering being treated as a service provider, fragmented requests, and isolated teams [21:11].

• Desired State: The goal was to move towards an adaptive topology by integrating "doing" and "driving" archetypes [16:17]. This involved a shift to a single product owner, broader product thinking, and product managers focusing on product management over project management [36:16]. The vision included more self-managing teams working directly with customers and owning the entire product [39:45]. Investments were made in scrum masters, agile coaches, and people management to support this [42:35].

• Current Reality: The transition has created "positive friction" in prioritization and mandate, leading to better dialogue and decision-making [51:41]. Teams are progressing towards effective delivery, with varying levels of maturity [52:54]. The current focus is on transparency, problem-solving, and continuous improvement [55:48].

Key Learnings and Insights:

• Software engineering should be viewed as a core discipline, not just a service function [33:38].

• A product management mindset is crucial for sustainable product development, rather than a project management approach [29:06].

• The Org Topologies is valuable for visualizing and managing organizational change [15:06].

• Organizational change is an ongoing process requiring continuous adaptation and learning [01:02:04].

• Leadership plays a critical role in fostering an environment where teams can succeed [01:05:08].

• Integrating diverse engineering domains (software, hardware, mechanical) presents challenges [01:16:46].

• Balancing agility with safety is essential in regulated environments [01:11:27].

• Organic learning time and the impact of product expansion on team capabilities are important considerations [01:27:07].