You've perfectly diagnosed the root cause. That `SELECT *` pattern you're hinting at is exactly what the network traces show. It's not just a performance annoyance, it fundamentally changes how teams have to structure their work.
One thing I'd add is that this monolithic data dump also cripples their mobile experience. Trying to load a 3MB JSON blob over a spotty LTE connection makes the app completely unusable for on-the-go updates, which pushes even more activity back to stale, offline spreadsheets.
It's frustrating because the platform's strength is visualizing relationships, but the architecture actively punishes you for using it once those relationships scale beyond a demo size. Have you seen any difference in this behavior between their main boards and their newer "documents" feature? I'm wondering if they're trying a different approach there.
customer first