Stop mapping every tiny dependency, start eliminating them

[#1]

How many of you are diligently linking every single "Blocks" or "Is Blocked By" relationship you can find? Every sub-task waiting on another sub-task, every story needing data from a different team's epic? You're told it's good practice, right? 

Well, I'm here to tell you that in many cases, you're doing it wrong.

The "Dependency Web" — A Symptom, Not a Solution

When your Jira board looks like a spiderweb of interconnections, where almost every other ticket has a "Blocks" link, what does that actually tell you? Beyond the obvious "this thing needs that thing", it often whispers (or screams) about deeper issues:

• When no single team or individual feels truly accountable for delivering a complete feature end-to-end, work gets chopped into tiny, interdependent pieces. Everyone owns a slice, no one owns the pie.
• Sometimes, the dependencies are baked into the system itself. Legacy monoliths, tightly coupled services, or just a generally messy codebase can force dependencies where they shouldn't exist.
• "We're waiting on the UI team for designs," "The backend team needs to expose that API first," "QA can't start until dev is completely done." These aren't just dependencies; they're often communication breakdowns disguised as project necessities.

The Lie of "Full Visibility"

The argument for mapping everything is usually "full visibility". But what kind of visibility is it when you're staring at a thousand tiny threads, unable to discern the truly critical path from the noise? 

Over-mapping leads to analysis paralysis, not clarity.

Our Goal Shouldn't Be to Map Dependencies, But to ELIMINATE Them

This is the core of my argument. Our efforts shouldn't be focused on meticulously documenting every inter-task relationship, but on aggressively reducing and eliminating them. Imagine a Jira board where only the truly critical, unavoidable dependencies stand out. Wouldn't that be more powerful?

How Do We Start Eliminating Dependencies?

1. Can your teams be restructured to own larger, more complete chunks of functionality? Can a team include its own UI, backend, and QA expertise?
2. Encourage direct communication over ticket comments. Are your developers talking directly to designers and product managers before work starts, identifying potential integration points and proactively solving them?
3. For significant features, clearly define who owns the entire delivery, from ideation to production. This "feature owner" (who might be a PM, a tech lead, or even a senior engineer) is responsible for coordinating and mitigating dependencies, rather than simply mapping them.
4. Are there architectural decisions that can reduce coupling between services? Can you design APIs that offer more flexibility? Can features be built with reasonable defaults or mock data initially, deferring complex integrations until later stages? 
5. If you absolutely cannot eliminate a dependency, then make it stand out. Jira should highlight the genuinely blocking, critical path items that require executive attention or significant coordination. Not every minor waiting state. Your board should be a signal, not just noise.

*Jira tip: if you’re looking for a clear visual way to track dependencies, Planyway for Jira with its roadmap is a good choice. Currently, the app supports dependency visualization and the automation is coming really soon. 

What's your dependency philosophy? Share your thoughts in the comments below!