Multiple Models with Multiple Perspectives in a Cross-Functional Team - Case Study from Healthcare

In many cross-functional teams we encounter communication challenges between different roles in the team. Making domain experts, designers, testers, developers and tech leads align on the shared understanding is not an easy task. This is mainly due to different perspectives that each team member brings to the table, each perspective being a valid one however not adequate on its own. The different perspectives are particularly visible when reasoning about different approaches to the decomposition of the domain problem at hand which leads to different perceptions of subdomains and bounded contexts.

In this case study we will go through different models of domain problem decomposition that helped align the perspectives in a cross-functional team in the healthcare domain. We will go through functional, role-based, user-context based and business capability based decomposition along with pros and cons of each approach, backed up by the feedback provided by the impact each approach had on the data ownership in resulting bounded contexts.

We will wrap-up with the reasoning behind the choice the team actually made and how it played out in structuring the code base, delivering value to their customers, and how it impacted the different roles in the team.