How to work better with design and engineering peers

A common question I get is: how do PMs work better with design / engineering peers?

I believe 1) decentralisation is key, and 2) getting everyone thinking product-first.

Design can’t just care about UX or UI. Engineering can’t just care about technical scope. And product can't just care about the requirements and move on. 

Everyone needs to think about:

- Trade-offs (if I add X to the scope, what am I blocking/removing with that decision?). 
- Delivery complexity (if I build this way, how am I making a team member’s life harder?)
- Estimation volatility (If I make this decision, how am I contributing to the probability of missing on the estimated delivery date?)

PMs need to drive this thinking. Push your team to include it in their rational. It might make the “planning” slightly longer, but everyone will make better choices, generate stronger buy-in and simplify decisions. You'll also get more pragmatic, smaller, quicker features to prove whether you can solve the problem or not.