Earlier quoted context omitted.
Again, that's generally fine and correct, but when you have 2 separate departments that do almost the identical job, it's time to question whether or not that 2nd department is needed. My argument wasn't that most management wasn't necessary. Especially for something as complex as modern cars, there is a need for organizing and managing the whole process correctly. What companies like VW suffer from is too much manag…
I see what you are saying. Companies where managers build kingdoms for zero business reason are pretty bad, especially when you are a manager that doesn't play those sorts of games. Was your project seen as quasi make or break? I've been places where that structure made sense in that context. Division lead is mainly full time liason to the board in order to keep them comfortable with the project, sales planning, fore…
I see your point about keeping all level of stakeholders aligned and interested in the project. Considering our project size though, and the fact that it was considered a permanent development project anyway, I don't see a reason why the managers should only be responsible for a single team. They had plenty of time to take over that stakeholder management for multiple teams.