Teamwork with Cabals

After reading the half life article regarding using "cabals" in the design process, I realized I know very little about how games are put together.  I thought designers worked with everyone in a team environment.  Another thought was that all the directors work together.  This article makes it seem like the people who created  Half Life were the first to work as a group.  Either way I'm glad that it worked out for them.  When the author spoke about how there were multiple interviews for a head designer, he said they couldn't find anyone and then started doing cabals.  It seems like they really messed up making the game the first time, then messed up the second time, then got lucky by randomly putting together teams.  It seems like the idea is more refined now.