3x in 3 years: Scaling an Engineering Organization

Joining PagerDuty as an Engineering Manager during its rapid growth phase offered a unique opportunity to explore the structural challenges of scaling an organization. Initially, the engineering team faced significant siloing issues between various departments and locations, leading to inefficiencies and communication gaps. Efforts to address these issues included experimenting with different organizational structures, such as a matrix organization, which introduced dual reporting and further complications. By 2016, the company transitioned to an Agile organization with vertical product Scrum teams and horizontal teams for cross-cutting concerns, adopting a true DevOps approach where teams owned their code and infrastructure. This shift allowed for greater team autonomy, faster iteration, and minimized dependencies, leading to improved productivity and collaboration. The company continued to refine its approach, embracing a tribal model inspired by Spotify to enhance shared ownership and vision, while focusing on continuous learning and adaptability to maintain agility and innovation in a high-growth environment.