How IT works in corporations: line org structure vs. matrix

Corporate IT is a complicated mechanism which is natural considering a long list of various business functions it should provide automation and optimization to and how adaptive it should stay to be able to compete in the world of zero-coding and cloud technologies (I wrote about “Shadow IT” problem earlier).

For a person who’s new to this environment it may seem a bit as the mad tea party. All organizational pieces are constantly moving, new bosses come, departments are reorganized, objectives are changed etc. I saw IT function in many corporations and, I must confess, this tendency was presented in most of the cases.

On top of it, IT becomes more and more matrix organized which changing every day routine and perception of environment for the people who work there. But let’s make a step behind and say what is matrix organization structure and what other types or org structure there may be?..

Well, I would say in reality there are 3 different configurations:

pure line structure
pure matrix structure
mixture of both

Line structure is a classical one: you have your manager, he\she does have own boss etc. All team is divided by those subordination chains, something like this:

While this diagram looks very logical and classy, in reality in dynamic IT corporate field it’s not 100% fit: there are too many silos in between teams, they cannot really reconfigure themselves every time they have new big task, i.e. project or product to develop, working connections are too clumsy and frozen.

Now, how matrix organizations look like? If we take “pure” matrix, which you don’t find often in big companies (more likely you’ll see them in small startups or family business), then it might look the following:

It usually has less levels in vertical, but the teams might be numerous. It’s very adaptive: any new task could be allocated to one or another team. Pay your attention that SCRUM Master here is working for all of the teams at once, it means they share its time. In reality, though, it’s hard to keep it matrix only with growth of your team: there will be some guys who are assigned to dedicated supportive tasks and not allocated to specific projects (i.e. administration team, quality, support etc.). Moreover, this type of organization creates a tremendous load for managing it (because all groups are reporting to one manager with no intermediates).

What is more practical and seen across Tech functions in Corporate environment is mix of line and matrix:

This one looks messy, but in reality it blends benefits from both line and matrix structures. On one hand, it’s flexible enough to accommodate new projects to be implemented and create a dedicated group to do it, on the other hand, there are elements which are in strict lines of command and stay the same no matter what happens.

This is the type of organizational structure you will most likely see in IT departments of middle and big companies today.

In reality it looks like this. Suppose you’re a developer who’s working in 1st chain of command. It means that you’ll report to two managers for different scope: on project matter you will report to Project Manager, but in regards to standards of coding, usage of common company infrastructure, HR related things (i.e. formal out of office approvals or salary related matters) you will speak to your line manager who is DevLead. DevLead and Project manager in this case supposed to talk with each other on regular basis as, naturally, your work in project team may impact your “status quo” with line manager and vice versa. For example, your performance in project may influence your salary increase or bonus, your vacation calendar may be revised and approved by both managers, your designation to particular project may be challenged by DevLead etc.

Mixed org structures create quite a complex relationship system in the team. You will need to be ready to build trust and establish connection with your matrix colleagues (which may be easier, as you naturally working with them every day in AGILE mode) as well as with line piece of organization which may be a bit more complex since they might seem to be siloed and their priorities won’t be necessarily matching the priorities of your particular project. You need to be ready to put an effort in this process.

Concluding, I wanted to mention that there is no ideal organizational structure, each of it serves its purpose on particular stage of company’s lifecycle. All in all, the smaller company is the easier chain of command should be and the more chances that matrix organization will take place. With growth companies are evolving in line chains of command, but in case if there is a project component in their every day work you can be sure they use mixed model.

If you want to know more about career in IT corporate world, sign up for my online course TechHero odyssey (I’m working on its creation now). Right now there’s first lection available for free. For those who signed I will propose a good discount when the course will be ready.