Why project structure scales with team size in dbt - Visual Breakdown

Concept Flow - Why project structure scales with team size

Start: Small Team

↓

Simple Project Structure

↓

Team Grows

↓

More People, More Work

↓

Need Clear Structure

↓

Divide Project into Modules

↓

Assign Teams to Modules

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Better Collaboration & Scaling

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Project Structure Supports Team Size

As the team grows, the project structure evolves from simple to modular to support collaboration and scaling.

Execution Sample

dbt

models/
  sales/
    sales_summary.sql
  marketing/
    campaign_performance.sql
  finance/
    revenue_report.sql

A dbt project organized into folders by team area to help multiple teams work independently.

Execution Table

Step	Team Size	Project Structure	Reason	Effect
1	1-2	Flat folder with all models	Few people, easy to manage	Simple and fast development
2	3-5	Add folders by domain	More people, need separation	Less conflict, clearer ownership
3	6-10	Modules with subfolders and docs	Teams specialize by domain	Better collaboration and review
4	10+	Strict modular structure with tests	Large teams, complex projects	Scalable, maintainable, clear responsibilities
5	End	Project structure matches team size	To avoid chaos and confusion	Efficient teamwork and delivery

💡 Project structure evolves as team size grows to maintain efficiency and clarity.

Variable Tracker

Variable	Start (Small Team)	After Growth 1	After Growth 2	After Growth 3	Final (Large Team)
Team Size	2	4	8	12	15
Project Structure	Flat	Domain folders	Modules with docs	Strict modular	Strict modular
Collaboration	Simple	Improved	Better	Efficient	Efficient
Conflicts	Low	Moderate	Low	Very Low	Very Low

Key Moments - 3 Insights

Why can't a flat project structure work well for large teams?

Because as shown in execution_table step 4, large teams need strict modular structures to avoid conflicts and confusion.

How does dividing the project into modules help teams?

It allows teams to work independently on different parts, reducing overlap and improving collaboration, as seen in step 3.

What happens to collaboration as the project structure evolves?

Collaboration improves from simple to efficient as the structure becomes more organized, shown in variable_tracker under 'Collaboration'.

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution_table, at which step does the project structure first include modules with documentation?

A Step 2

B Step 4

C Step 3

D Step 1

💡 Hint

Check the 'Project Structure' column in execution_table rows.

According to variable_tracker, what is the team size when the project structure becomes 'Strict modular'?

A 4

B 12

C 8

D 2

💡 Hint

Look at the 'Project Structure' row and match it with 'Team Size' in variable_tracker.

If the team size was 5, what project structure would be most appropriate based on execution_table?

A Add folders by domain

B Modules with subfolders and docs

C Flat folder with all models

D Strict modular structure with tests

💡 Hint

Refer to execution_table step 2 for team size 3-5.

Concept Snapshot

Why project structure scales with team size:
- Small teams use flat structures
- Growing teams add domain folders
- Larger teams use modules with docs
- Very large teams need strict modularity
- Structure helps reduce conflicts and improve collaboration

Full Transcript

When a team is small, a simple flat project structure works well because few people work on the same files. As the team grows, more people work on different parts, so the project is divided into folders by domain to reduce conflicts. When the team grows larger, modules with documentation and tests are added to help teams specialize and collaborate better. For very large teams, a strict modular structure is necessary to keep the project maintainable and clear. This evolution of project structure matches the team size to keep work efficient and organized.