Scaling systems is hard, but we’re developers — that’s kind of our thing. Scaling people? Well, that’s significantly harder. Humans are complicated. Broadly speaking, companies have three stages of development: infancy, those awkward teenage years and — if they survive the trials of adolescence — adulthood. An infant startup is so drastically different from its adult incarnation that they can be considered different companies. Each will have a unique mission and culture. Scaling isn’t just about making what you have bigger. An ant can’t be scaled to the size of an elephant. Because the internal structure is fundamentally different. Instead, companies have to evolve. But companies aren’t living, breathing organisms. They’re collections of people — families, tribes and civilizations. So how do you scale a team of two to twenty? The answer starts over 2,000 years ago in Sparta. This talk will focus on three distinct military organizations: Spartans, Mongols and Romans. Sparta’s standing army numbered 10,000 whereas Rome’s peaked at half a million. We’ll look at the structure of each military and apply the lessons learned to our development teams and organizations.

1. Emily Freeman // @editingemily
Scaling Sparta
Military Lessons for Growing
A Dev Team

2. Emily Freeman // @editingemily
Emily Freeman
Developer Advocate @ Kickbox

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Scaling people is hard.

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Scaling isn’t just bigger.

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Communication

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10CONNECTIONS

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CONNECTIONS
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CONNECTIONS
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The Spartans

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Much nakedness.

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Find what you do best.

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Hire generalists.

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Allow natural communication.

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Take on the big boys.

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The Mongols

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Mongols were tough.

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Genghis Khan

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Genghis Khan

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Embraced religious tolerance.

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Promoted based on merit.

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Cultivated equal(ish) rights.

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Reinvigorated the Silk Road
(No, not that one. The original.)

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Adapted quickly.

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42. Think strategically.
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43. Think strategically.
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44. Focus on what. Not how.
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45. Enable autonomy.
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46. Enable autonomy.
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47. Stay small.
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48. Keep structure simple.
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49. Keep structure simple.
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50. Focus on one thing.
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51. The Romans
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Caesar Augustus

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57. Contractors
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Break into small teams.

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Set a clear vision.

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Set a clear vision.

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Master logistics.

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Choose one project
management tool.

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Invest in your employees.

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Invest in your employees.

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Acknowledge mental health.

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Recognize hard work.

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Introduce specialists.

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Embrace APIs and services.

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Have honest conversations.

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Have honest conversations.

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Create your Sparta.

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Emily Freeman
Developer Advocate @ Kickbox