The 'Waterline Model' for Fixing Dysfunctional Teams
A diagnostic framework called the Waterline Model is gaining traction for helping PMs debug team dysfunction. Featured in Lenny's Newsletter, the model separates visible issues like process gaps from underlying problems like a lack of psychological safety. It provides a structured way for leaders to address team breakdowns without defaulting to blame.
The Waterline Model was originally developed by organizational development pioneer Roger Harrison, who first wrote about it in a 1970 article titled "Choosing the Depth of Organizational Intervention". His core idea was to address problems at the "shallowest" level possible before moving to deeper, more personal interventions. The framework was recently popularized for a new generation of tech leaders by Molly Graham, who has held leadership roles at Google, Facebook, and Quip. She adapted it as a practical tool for managers, famously advising them to "snorkel before you scuba," a reminder to investigate surface-level issues first. The first and most important area to investigate is "Structure," which sits just below the surface. This level includes clarity of goals, roles, and expectations. A product manager using the model would start by asking concrete questions: Can everyone on the team state the team's primary goal? Does each person know what they are personally responsible for and how their success is measured? If structural issues are resolved, the next level to examine is team "Dynamics." This involves the team's unwritten rules and norms for communication, decision-making, and handling conflict or mistakes. According to Graham, a staggering 80% of team problems are caused by breakdowns at the Structure or Dynamics levels, not by issues with individuals. Only after snorkeling the surface of Structure and Dynamics should a leader "scuba dive" into the deeper levels of "Interpersonal" and "Intrapersonal" issues. These involve direct conflicts between two people or an individual's personal struggles, respectively. Jumping straight to blaming individuals is a common leadership trap that the model helps to avoid. Unlike other popular frameworks such as Patrick Lencioni's "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team," which presents a hierarchical pyramid of team health (starting with a foundation of Trust), the Waterline Model is a diagnostic process. It methodically guides a leader to find the root cause of a problem by starting with the system before examining the people within it.
