Lost in Translation: How Silos and Handovers Break Teams
Silos and handovers are the quiet killers of collaboration. In our earlier post, The Clarity Advantage: How Separating What and How Fuels Better Results, we explored how clearly separating strategy and execution can unlock better outcomes. But when that separation becomes fragmentation—when the what lives in one silo and the how in another—things start to break. Handoffs multiply. Context gets lost. And a wall of confusion quietly rises between teams. What started as clarity turns into chaos.
The Illusion of Control
Organizations often build silos to create order: departments, functions, and roles that each take ownership of part of the value chain. Handovers are introduced to manage transitions between these units—like passing a baton in a relay race. But unlike a sprint on a track, knowledge and context don’t transfer cleanly. Details get lost, assumptions go unspoken, and teams start to protect their turf instead of pursuing a shared goal.
We think we’re optimizing for efficiency. In reality, we’re optimizing for blame.
The Wall of Confusion
At some point, everyone starts to feel it: the Wall of Confusion.
- The engineering team wonders why requirements change last minute.
- The design team is frustrated that their intent gets lost in development.
- The business side feels like no one’s listening—or delivering.
These aren’t just communication issues. They’re structural problems, baked into the way work is divided and handed off. Every handover is a moment of risk: context drops, ownership fades, and teams retreat behind their silo walls.
Flow Breaks Here
When we talk about flow—value moving smoothly from idea to impact—silos and handovers are the places where flow breaks down. Instead of one continuous motion, we get fragmented effort. Instead of shared learning, we get finger-pointing. Instead of agility, we get bureaucracy.
The result? Longer cycle times, lower morale, misaligned priorities, and a growing gap between what customers need and what the organization delivers.
Why It Happens
It’s easy to blame individuals, but the real problem is systemic:
- Departmental goals outweigh product outcomes.
- Organizational charts dictate collaboration (or lack of it).
- Processes are optimized for control, not learning.
- Roles are defined by input, not by impact.
When each group only sees a slice of the work, no one sees the whole picture. And without shared purpose, there’s no shared responsibility.
What to Do Instead
You can’t remove all separation overnight—but you can change how you work across boundaries. Here’s how:
1. Design for Collaboration, Not Control
Create cross-functional teams that own outcomes from end to end. Avoid structures that rely on handovers to move work forward.
2. Invest in Shared Language and Artifacts
Use working agreements, visual boards, and joint planning sessions to align across roles. Don’t assume understanding—create it together.
3. Bring Feedback Loops Closer
Shorten the distance between decision-makers and delivery teams. Let insights flow both ways—early and often.
4. Replace Blame with Curiosity
When something goes wrong, don’t ask “Who messed this up?” Ask “What did the system make easy or hard?” You’ll uncover root causes faster.
5. Celebrate Whole-Team Wins
Stop rewarding individual heroics in isolated functions. Start recognizing cross-team achievements that move the needle for real users.
From Separation to Shared Success
Silos and handovers might seem harmless at first—just the way things are done. But they come at a cost: fractured communication, missed opportunities, and demoralized teams. The good news? You don’t need a reorg to start breaking down the wall of confusion. You just need to see the system, invite collaboration, and design for flow.
Because when teams move together, great work doesn’t get lost in translation.