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Capability Mapping
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A way to visualise what your team (or organisation) can actually do.
The Idea
List out the capabilities needed to deliver your product or service. For each one, assess:
- Do we have it? (Yes / Partial / No)
- How strong is it? (Weak / Adequate / Strong)
- Who owns it?
- Is it strategic? (Does it give us an edge, or is it table stakes?)
The result is a map that shows your strengths, gaps, and where to invest.
What Counts as a Capability
Not just technical skills. Capabilities include:
- Engineering skills (backend, frontend, data, ML, etc.)
- Domain knowledge (payments, healthcare, fintech).
- Operational abilities (incident response, on-call, deployment).
- Soft capabilities (hiring, onboarding, technical writing).
How to Use It
- Hiring plans - hire against the gaps, not wish lists.
- Build vs buy decisions - if a capability isn't strategic, outsource it.
- Reorganisation - align teams with capabilities, not projects.
- Growth planning - know what you need before you scale.
The Trap
Don't confuse "we have someone who did this once" with "we have this capability." A capability means the team can reliably deliver on it.
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