How Horizontal Management Boosts Cross‑Team Collaboration: Real Stories and Lessons

Background

Traditional vertical management follows the PDCA (Plan‑Do‑Check‑Act) cycle. The author shifts focus to horizontal management , which involves coordinating with non‑direct reports such as developers, requirement analysts, and designers. A simple model illustrates the concept.

Story 1: No Progress

After a system went live, data issues required integration across multiple systems. The author compiled a bug list and shared it with three PMs, receiving inconsistent feedback:

PM_one: "Fixed, ready for testing, but some issues remain."

PM_two: "80% done, will regress next week."

PM_three: "Aware but not yet addressed."

Following a second meeting, the author added a development‑status column, prompting concrete updates and achieving the desired bug‑status changes.

Story 2: Not Synchronized

During a test of the homepage, the author discovered that the data source was dummy data. The root cause was a mismatch between the test plan and the actual release, illustrating how schedule changes and insufficient staffing can derail progress.

Key observations:

Insufficient process documentation leads to ad‑hoc work.

People are the primary factor affecting quality; managing them solves most issues.

Story 3: Dragging Progress (The "Old Hand")

When a bug was submitted, the developer responded with generic tags like 【未复现】 and 【未排查到空数据】. This triggered a lengthy verification loop, wasting half a month. The author classifies such uncooperative developers as “old hands” and recommends private discussions, followed by escalation if needed.

Story 4: Unfamiliarity

A testing task required a new build because the developer’s code was outdated. The build process took about five hours due to a single point of knowledge. The author suggests regular training and documented hand‑over procedures to avoid such bottlenecks.

Additional causes identified:

Technical turnover creates single points of failure.

Roles should be clearly assigned; large companies often have dedicated release engineers.

Attitude matters more than technical skill; a solid process compensates for technical gaps.

Conclusion

Horizontal management starts with managing one’s own tasks, then extends to coordinating with parallel roles. Effective communication, clear processes, and proactive follow‑up are essential for overcoming the most common obstacles in cross‑team projects.