Specialization Is For Insects

Growing companies face a critical tradeoff when transitioning from generalists to specialists. While specialization improves output quality, it dramatically increases coordination costs, slows delivery, and raises the probability of underperforming team members blocking progress. Exceptional generalists often outperform average specialists in adjacent domains. To mitigate these risks, companies should stay lean with minimal org layers, maintain strong project oversight, and develop processes to quickly detect and address performance issues.