Matrix Teaming
I’ve been playing with some ideas for a type of team that has very flexible membership and comes together to solve problems within a specific field, perhaps as part of a project, and then disbands. This takes a lot from Amy Edmondson’s ideas on Teaming, and it made me question the difference between cross-functional and matrix teams. These ideas are very much in progress, so lots to figure out…
What are matrix teams?
Matrix teams consist of people with different skill sets and from different disciplines, much like cross-functional teams, but there are two main differences (in my current thinking). Cross-functional teams often have stable membership whilst matrix teams have changing membership, which means that matrix teams can solving multiple problems or have a changing purpose, whereas cross-functional teams are often focused on a specific set of problems.
What is matrix teaming?
Edmondson’s definition of teaming includes ‘teamwork on the fly’ to express the key element a group of people coming together to work on something in a very flexible and temporary way. So, matrix teaming brings together the flexible membership of a matrix team with the faster to implement and ability to focus on a specific problem of teaming.
Matrix teaming might look like a shared document or video meeting or in-person workshop where people from across the organisation who don’t normally work together, come together to solve a specific problem.
Characteristics of different team structures
| Functional Team | Cross Functional Team | Matrix Teams | Matrix Teaming |
| Members have the same discipline / skill set | Members have the different discipline / skill set | Members have the different discipline / skill set | Members have the different discipline / skill set |
| Typically changing membership | Typically stable membership | Changing membership for different projects | Changing membership for the same project |
| Decision-making outside team | Decision-making within team | Decision-making within team | Decision-making outside team |
| Single purpose | Ongoing purpose | Changing purpose | Specific purpose |
| Solving specific problems within a single field | Solving specific problems within multiple fields | Solving multiple problems within multiple fields | Solving multiple problems within specific fields |
Sources