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Writings

Notes from practice

Notes on organizations, technology, and the craft of building digital solutions — from tactical detail to strategic perspective.

This is where I think out loud — working through ideas on organizations, technology, and execution, with the occasional detour into the habits and systems that help us work and live well. If something resonates or you’d like to discuss it further, I’m easy to reach.

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2026

Jul 8, 2026organizational-design
Positions, Roles, and Capabilities
Position, role, and capability are not synonyms — each belongs to a different owner and fails in a different way when misread. This post defines the three, maps how they interact, and identifies three distinct gaps that emerge when they fall out of alignment: a compensation problem, an enterprise delivery problem, and a personal one that only the individual can resolve.
Jul 7, 2026diagrams-as-code
Which Diagram for Which View
Each of the Ten Views of a digital solution has a natural diagram type and a tool that produces it well. This post maps them one view at a time — using PlantUML, Mermaid, BPMN.io, and DBML, with a consistent running example of a small online bookshop and source included for every diagram. A cross-reference matrix summarises the full mapping at the end.
Jul 5, 2026diagrams-as-code
Diagrams as Code
Every team has that diagram — the one that was accurate once, then quietly fell behind as the system moved on. Diagrams as code is the practice that makes visual documentation reviewable, versioned, and maintainable — not by adding process, but by changing the file format.
Jul 3, 2026solution-design
The Ten Views of a Digital Solution
Most digital solutions are documented partially — the technical parts get captured, the rest is assumed. The Ten Views provide a framework for what complete solution documentation looks like: Current State, Domain, Requirements, Customer, Information, Organizational, Process, System, Interaction, and Operational.
Jul 2, 2026operating-models
Design Your Operating Model or It Will Design You
Every IT organization has an operating model — the question is whether you designed it or it designed you. Without intentional design, teams default to informal networks, ownership gaps, and structural failure modes that no amount of good hiring or better tooling will fix.
Jan 1, 2026aerobic-conditioning
Weekly Aerobic Base Training with Integrated Strength and Mobility
A sustainable weekly training program built on aerobic conditioning through rucking (6 days/week), with bodyweight strength work (3 days/week) and daily mobility. Inspired by Swedish Armed Forces BRAK programs, designed for long-term functional fitness around a full-time work schedule.

2025

Aug 17, 2025team-topologies
One Mode and Five Types Is All That You Need
After working with various organizational models—from matrix structures to Team Topologies—I've discovered a pattern that emerges when organizations successfully implement team-based frameworks: they converge on X-as-a-Service as their primary interaction mode and evolve toward five distinct service types. This approach reduces coordination overhead, creates clear team boundaries, and enables genuine autonomy while maintaining system coherence. The fifth service type—Stewardship Services—treats enterprise design itself as a consumable service, filling a critical gap that becomes apparent at scale.
Aug 12, 2025engineering-leadership
Making Daily Check-ins Meaningful: A Flow-Focused Approach
Learn a practical 15-minute flow-focused approach to daily check-ins that builds systems thinking, improves team coordination, and drives predictable delivery through strategic work prioritization.
Aug 9, 2025product-management
Why I Prefer Stakeholder Stories
Picture this: You're in a product planning meeting, and someone reads out a user story: 'As a user, I want to receive email notifications so that I stay informed about updates.' Everyone nods. It sounds reasonable. But here's the problem—who actually wants this feature, and why? As an IT architect, I've seen teams build perfectly functional systems that nobody uses because they solved the stated problem instead of the real problem. This is where stakeholder stories become transformative, forcing teams to ask the right question: What outcome are we trying to achieve, and which stakeholders actually care about it?
Aug 8, 2025engineering-leadership
Beyond Team Structure: Why Intrinsic Motivation Drives Performance
Why even the best team structures fail without intrinsic motivation. How autonomy, mastery, and purpose transform knowledge workers from compliant to committed, creating sustainable competitive advantage through engaged, high-performing teams.
Aug 6, 2025engineering-leadership
The Power of Working in Pairs
Beyond team size: How strategic pairing creates resilient, high-performing teams by establishing intentional structures that maximize collaboration and minimize coordination overhead.
Aug 5, 2025team-structure
Right-Sizing Your Teams: How to Fix Size Problems
This comprehensive guide helps engineering leaders identify and solve team size problems. Learn to recognize the telltale signs of oversized, undersized, and underutilized teams, then apply structured playbooks to right-size them for optimal performance. Includes practical strategies for overcoming resistance, measuring success, and maintaining team effectiveness throughout organizational changes.
Aug 1, 2025team-structure
The Science of Team Size: Why Too Big or Too Small Breaks Performance
The science is clear: team size is a critical factor in performance. Too large, and communication overhead crushes productivity; too small, and you lack resilience. Discover why the 7±2 sweet spot balances communication efficiency with necessary skill coverage. Learn the research behind optimal team sizing and how to address common objections from both sides of the spectrum.
Jul 25, 2025architecture
Beyond Architecture: Exploring Alternative Metaphors for the Enterprise
This post challenges the dominance of the architectural metaphor as the primary lens for enterprise design and explores more dynamic alternatives. By examining how metaphors shape our thinking, we consider machines (emphasizing efficiency), ecosystems (highlighting interdependence), cities (balancing design with emergence), and ultimately gardening as a framework that naturally resolves tensions between structure and adaptability, control and autonomy, stability and innovation. Rather than providing definitive answers, the post cultivates questions about how shifting metaphors might transform leadership approaches, team dynamics, and organizational capabilities to better address the complex challenges facing modern enterprises.
Jun 18, 2025visual-communication
Visualization as Strategy: Transforming Complex Work into Clear Decisions
Strategic visualization transforms team alignment, decision-making, and delivery outcomes. Learn key principles and practices that drive measurable business results through effective visual communication.
Jun 15, 2025engineering-leadership
Engineering Leadership: Making 1:1 Meetings Meaningful
A practical approach to elevating 1:1 meetings into impactful coaching and alignment sessions, grounded in research and team psychology.
Jun 10, 2025frontend-development
Web Frontend Rendering Strategies: A Strategic Decision-Maker's Guide
This strategic guide helps technology leaders navigate the complex landscape of web rendering approaches—from CSR to SSR, SSG, and ISR—with a decision framework that aligns technical choices with business requirements, performance metrics, and SEO considerations to optimize both user experience and operational efficiency.
Jun 9, 2025enterprise-systems
Enterprises Are Systems Too: Designing for Competitive Advantage
Enterprises function as systems where intentional design of operating models, interfaces, and feedback loops can dramatically reduce coordination overhead, accelerate decision-making, and create sustainable competitive advantage.
Jun 8, 2025technology-strategy
Relaunching My Website: A Business Asset
I'm transforming my digital presence from a basic business card to a strategic asset that demonstrates expertise, builds relationships through content, and creates new opportunities through public knowledge sharing across blog posts, consulting services, and venture initiatives.

© 2026 • Lars Barkman