# How to Choose Two ways: 1. **Evaluating tradeoffs, ideally with some kind of data.** Every configuration has tradeoffs, and there (probably) is no such thing as a single perfect design. A default-matrix organization will be deeply in-sync for major global initiatives, but will have a hard time being customer-focused or inventing the next amazing thing. Autonomous units will be more customer-centered, but will be “messy” in comparison to a matrix. IMO the best data to inform different organization designs is *time allocation,* mostly because it’s our only non-renewable resource. 2. **Trying different alternatives and seeing what works** (which helps with option 1). This is *always happening* in organizations, but almost never with the kind of formality and intention that we’d like. Why is this important? Because it defines the product we make. Tesla’s case, above, is a perfect illustration of Conway’s Law. > Any organization that designs a system (defined broadly) will produce a design whose structure is a copy of the organization's communication structure. — Melvin E. Conway **Said differently: organization configures the product; organization design is product design.** --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://book.cpj.fyi/configure/how-to-choose.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.