Teams smaller than 3 lack the diversity to generate creative perspectives and seem under-resourced. Teams larger suffer from the complexity of coordination. Our experience teaches us that when a team of 5 or more struggle to make progress. We find these larger teams tend to compromise instead of clear-cut decisions. The louder team members are heard and they may not necessarily have the best ideas.
Once a creative team has come up with a solution, they can hand it over to an operational team for execution or the creative team itself can become the operational team. Operational teams can be any size tailored to the specific project and deadline. The more complex the project or tighter the deadline, the team size is increased.
This is not to say a creative team of 3 will have all required skills, perspectives, or stakeholders included. It’s what we have found to be the most efficient and effective way to work.
