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🏢 Spaces Guide - Complete Visual Documentation

📋 Table of Contents

  1. What is a Space?
  2. Visual Representation
  3. When to Use Spaces
  4. How to Use Spaces
  5. Common Use Cases
  6. Best Practices

What is a Space?

A Space is a high-level organizational container in Scrumpty that represents a department, product area, or major business unit. Spaces help you organize your work hierarchically and provide clear separation between different areas of your organization.

Key Characteristics:

  • Unique Identifier: Each space has a short key (2-10 characters, e.g., "ENG", "MKT", "HR")
  • Work Item Prefixing: The space key prefixes all work items created within it (e.g., "ENG-123")
  • Project Container: Spaces contain multiple projects
  • Team Assignment: Teams can be assigned to work within specific spaces

Visual Representation

Organizational Hierarchy

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                        WORKSPACE                            │
│                    (Your Organization)                       │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                              │
        ┌─────────────────────┼─────────────────────┐
        │                     │                     │
┌───────▼────────┐   ┌────────▼────────┐   ┌───────▼────────┐
│  SPACE: ENG    │   │  SPACE: MKT     │   │  SPACE: HR     │
│  (Engineering) │   │  (Marketing)    │   │  (Human Res.)  │
└───────┬────────┘   └────────┬────────┘   └───────┬────────┘
        │                     │                     │
    ┌───┴───┐             ┌───┴───┐             ┌───┴───┐
    │       │             │       │             │       │
┌───▼───┐ ┌─▼────┐    ┌───▼───┐ ┌─▼────┐    ┌───▼───┐ ┌─▼────┐
│Project│ │Project│   │Project│ │Project│   │Project│ │Project│
│  A    │ │  B   │    │  X    │ │  Y   │    │  M    │ │  N   │
└───┬───┘ └──┬───┘    └───┬───┘ └──┬───┘    └───┬───┘ └──┬───┘
    │        │            │        │            │        │
  Tasks    Tasks        Tasks    Tasks        Tasks    Tasks

Space Structure Example

WORKSPACE: Acme Corp
│
├── 🏢 SPACE: ENG (Engineering)
│   ├── 📁 Project: Mobile App (ENG-APP)
│   │   ├── 📋 Task: ENG-APP-1
│   │   ├── 📋 Task: ENG-APP-2
│   │   └── 📋 Task: ENG-APP-3
│   │
│   ├── 📁 Project: Backend API (ENG-API)
│   │   ├── 📋 Task: ENG-API-1
│   │   └── 📋 Task: ENG-API-2
│   │
│   └── 📁 Project: Infrastructure (ENG-INFRA)
│       └── 📋 Task: ENG-INFRA-1
│
├── 🏢 SPACE: MKT (Marketing)
│   ├── 📁 Project: Q1 Campaign (MKT-Q1)
│   │   ├── 📋 Task: MKT-Q1-1
│   │   └── 📋 Task: MKT-Q1-2
│   │
│   └── 📁 Project: Brand Refresh (MKT-BRAND)
│       └── 📋 Task: MKT-BRAND-1
│
└── 🏢 SPACE: HR (Human Resources)
    └── 📁 Project: Onboarding (HR-ONB)
        ├── 📋 Task: HR-ONB-1
        └── 📋 Task: HR-ONB-2

When to Use Spaces

✅ Use Spaces When:

  1. Multiple Departments: Your organization has distinct departments (Engineering, Marketing, Sales, HR)
  2. Product Lines: You manage multiple product lines or business units
  3. Large Teams: You have large teams that need clear separation of work
  4. Different Workflows: Different areas of work require different processes or workflows
  5. Separate Reporting: You need to track metrics and progress separately by area
  6. Access Control: You want to control who can see/access different areas of work

❌ Don't Use Spaces When:

  1. Small Team: You're a small team working on a single product (use Projects directly)
  2. Single Department: Your entire organization works in one area
  3. Temporary Work: For short-term or one-off initiatives (use Projects instead)

How to Use Spaces

Step 1: Access Spaces

  1. Navigate to your workspace
  2. Click on "Spaces" in the sidebar navigation
  3. View all existing spaces in your workspace

Step 2: Create a New Space

┌──────────────────────────────────────┐
│   Create a new Space                 │
├──────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                      │
│  Space Name *                     [?]│
│  ┌────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │ Engineering                    │ │
│  └────────────────────────────────┘ │
│  A descriptive name for your space  │
│                                      │
│  Space Key *                      [?]│
│  ┌────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │ ENG                            │ │
│  └────────────────────────────────┘ │
│  Used as prefix (e.g., ENG-PROJ-1)  │
│                                      │
│  Description (Optional)              │
│  ┌────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │ All engineering projects       │ │
│  └────────────────────────────────┘ │
│                                      │
│  [ Cancel ]        [ Create Space ] │
└──────────────────────────────────────┘

Step 3: Configure Space Settings

  • Set space admins
  • Configure default workflows
  • Set up teams assigned to the space
  • Define space-level permissions

Step 4: Create Projects Within Space

  1. Go to the space detail page
  2. Click "Create Project"
  3. Projects automatically inherit the space key prefix

Common Use Cases

1. Department-Based Organization

Scenario: Large company with multiple departments

Workspace: TechCorp
├── SPACE: ENG - Engineering Department
├── SPACE: MKT - Marketing Department  
├── SPACE: SALES - Sales Department
├── SPACE: HR - Human Resources
└── SPACE: FIN - Finance Department

Benefits:

  • Clear departmental boundaries
  • Easy reporting by department
  • Separate workflows per department

2. Product-Based Organization

Scenario: Company with multiple product lines

Workspace: SaaSCo
├── SPACE: CRM - CRM Product
├── SPACE: ERP - ERP Product
├── SPACE: ECOM - E-commerce Platform
└── SPACE: MOBILE - Mobile Apps

Benefits:

  • Product-centric organization
  • Independent product roadmaps
  • Cross-functional teams per product

3. Client-Based Organization

Scenario: Agency managing multiple clients

Workspace: Digital Agency
├── SPACE: ACME - Acme Corp Client
├── SPACE: GLOBEX - Globex Inc Client
├── SPACE: INITECH - Initech Client
└── SPACE: INTERNAL - Internal Projects

Benefits:

  • Clear client separation
  • Easy client-specific reporting
  • Isolated permissions per client

4. Hybrid Organization

Scenario: Mix of internal departments and product lines

Workspace: MegaCorp
├── SPACE: PROD-A - Product A (cross-functional)
├── SPACE: PROD-B - Product B (cross-functional)
├── SPACE: IT - IT Infrastructure
├── SPACE: HR - Human Resources
└── SPACE: LEGAL - Legal Department

Best Practices

✨ Naming Conventions

Space Names (Descriptive):

  • ✅ Engineering
  • ✅ Marketing & Communications
  • ✅ Customer Success
  • ❌ Team 1
  • ❌ Project Group

Space Keys (Short & Memorable):

  • ✅ ENG (Engineering)
  • ✅ MKT (Marketing)
  • ✅ CS (Customer Success)
  • ✅ INFRA (Infrastructure)
  • ❌ ENGRNG (Too long)
  • ❌ A1 (Not descriptive)

📊 Organization Tips

  1. Keep it Flat: Don't create too many spaces (5-15 is usually ideal)
  2. Clear Boundaries: Ensure each space has a clear, distinct purpose
  3. Consistent Keys: Use consistent key patterns (all 2-4 chars, or all descriptive)
  4. Document Purpose: Add descriptions to help team members understand each space

🔐 Permissions & Access

  1. Space Admins: Assign 1-2 admins per space
  2. Team Access: Grant teams access to relevant spaces only
  3. Cross-Space Work: Use work item links for cross-space dependencies

📈 Scaling Guidelines

Organization Size Recommended Spaces
1-10 people 0-2 spaces
10-50 people 2-5 spaces
50-200 people 5-10 spaces
200+ people 10-20 spaces

Real-World Examples

Example 1: Software Company

WORKSPACE: CloudTech Inc.
│
├── SPACE: ENG (Engineering)
│   ├── Backend Services
│   ├── Frontend Applications
│   └── Mobile Development
│
├── SPACE: PROD (Product)
│   ├── Product Roadmap
│   ├── Feature Specifications
│   └── User Research
│
├── SPACE: DESIGN (Design)
│   ├── UI/UX Projects
│   ├── Brand Assets
│   └── Design System
│
├── SPACE: QA (Quality Assurance)
│   ├── Test Plans
│   ├── Automation
│   └── Bug Tracking
│
└── SPACE: DEVOPS (DevOps)
    ├── Infrastructure
    ├── CI/CD Pipelines
    └── Security

Example 2: Marketing Agency

WORKSPACE: Creative Solutions
│
├── SPACE: CLIENT-A (Client: Acme Corp)
│   ├── Website Redesign
│   ├── Social Media Campaign
│   └── Content Creation
│
├── SPACE: CLIENT-B (Client: TechStart)
│   ├── Brand Strategy
│   └── Launch Campaign
│
└── SPACE: INTERNAL (Internal Work)
    ├── Business Development
    ├── Training & Development
    └── Operations

Quick Reference

When You Need a Space

Indicator Use Space?
Working across multiple departments ✅ Yes
Managing multiple product lines ✅ Yes
Need separate reporting by area ✅ Yes
Different workflows per area ✅ Yes
50+ team members ✅ Likely Yes
Single small team ❌ No
Single product focus ❌ Probably No
Temporary project ❌ No

Space vs Project vs Task

SPACE     → High-level organizational unit (Department/Product)
  ↓
PROJECT   → Specific initiative or deliverable
  ↓
TASK      → Individual work item

Example Flow:

  • SPACE: ENG (Engineering Department)
    • PROJECT: Mobile App Redesign
      • TASK: Design new login screen
      • TASK: Implement authentication
      • TASK: Add biometric support

Getting Started Checklist

  • Identify your organizational structure
  • Determine if you need spaces (see "When to Use Spaces")
  • Plan your space keys (2-10 characters, memorable)
  • Create your first space
  • Set space admins and permissions
  • Create projects within the space
  • Train team members on the structure
  • Review and adjust as needed

Support & Questions

If you have questions about organizing your workspace with spaces:

  1. Review this guide
  2. Check existing spaces in your workspace for examples
  3. Consult with workspace admins
  4. Start simple and evolve your structure over time

Remember: Spaces are flexible! You can always adjust your structure as your organization grows and evolves.