When GrowthEngine engaged with Edmodo, it was one of the most popular ed-tech platforms globally, drawing users from various educational systems around the world. The platform's engineering team had grown to about 100 people, with teams split between the United States and China. This introduced unique challenges, particularly stemming from the cultural differences in how teams in the US and China were accustomed to operating.
The US-based engineers typically leaned toward a more autonomous and agile development environment, often embracing flat hierarchies and iterative processes. Decision-making was decentralized, with engineers encouraged to experiment and quickly iterate on features or product improvements. On the other hand, the China-based engineers were more familiar with hierarchical structures and top-down management approaches. Their workflow tended to follow a more traditional, rigid model where decisions often needed approval from higher management, resulting in slower iterations but a focus on long-term stability.
Communication between teams, while regular, was sometimes hampered by different expectations regarding timelines, feedback loops, and performance metrics. The engineering teams would struggle to reconcile the agile, fast-paced culture of the US office with the more measured, hierarchical approach preferred by the Chinese team. These cultural differences were exacerbated by time zone challenges and language barriers, making real-time collaboration and brainstorming difficult.
Moreover, the platform’s global user base demanded constant updates and localized improvements, which put pressure on both teams. The US engineers would prioritize features tailored to Western educational needs, while the Chinese engineers were more focused on developing features that catered to the rapidly evolving ed-tech landscape in Asia. This often resulted in misalignment in development priorities, requiring significant effort in harmonizing the product vision across different regions.
GrowthEngine, with its expertise in international team integration, played a key role in helping the CTO of Edmodo reshape the engineering dynamics by strategically enhancing the US team with engineers from Latin America to reduce the dependency on the Chinese team.
Our approach leveraged the cultural similarities between the US and Latin American engineers. Both regions tend to share a collaborative work culture, with a preference for flexibility, creative problem-solving, and iterative workflows. Latin American engineers, who are generally aligned with the US work style, were able to quickly adapt to the agile, decentralized processes that the US team favored. Their ability to communicate fluidly in English and their comfort with a flat organizational structure made them an ideal fit for Edmodo’s need to scale its US team without further complicating cross-cultural dynamics.
Furthermore, the time zone alignment between Latin America and the US offered a distinct advantage. Unlike the challenges faced with China’s vastly different time zones, which often led to delays in collaboration, the nearshore nature of Latin American engineers allowed for real-time communication and a more seamless workflow. Daily standups, sprints, and brainstorming sessions became more efficient, enabling quicker iteration on product features targeted for the Western market.
In parallel, the CTO made the strategic decision to focus the Chinese engineering team on the Asian market. This allowed the Chinese team to operate within a framework they were more comfortable with, using a structured, hierarchical approach while addressing the unique demands of the rapidly growing Asian educational sector. By honing in on the needs of their local market, the Chinese engineers could tailor product features specifically for the region, without the added complexity of trying to align with Western development practices.
This division of responsibilities not only played to the strengths of both teams but also minimized friction by reducing the need for constant synchronization between the US and China teams. The US and Latin American teams focused on Western market innovations, while the Chinese team took charge of localizing the product for Asia, leading to greater efficiency and higher morale across the board.
GrowthEngine's strategic staff augmentation and market-focused division of labor provided Edmodo with a sustainable solution to its cultural and operational challenges. The result was a more harmonious and productive global engineering team, with each region contributing to the company’s overall success in a way that aligned with their cultural and market expertise.
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