Systems, Not Heroics: Designing Work That Does Not Depend on One Person
- RESTRAT Labs
- 7 days ago
- 9 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Heroics at work often mask deeper problems in systems. When operations rely on individual effort, they become fragile, prone to burnout, and unsustainable. Instead, organizations should focus on building systems that ensure consistency, reduce dependence on key individuals, and allow teams to handle challenges efficiently.
Key takeaways:
Heroics reveal system flaws: If work stops when someone is unavailable, the system - not the person - is the issue.
System-driven reliability: Clear processes, shared responsibilities, and documented workflows create stability.
Burnout prevention: Spreading workload across systems, not individuals, reduces stress and improves long-term performance.
Practical solutions: Automate repetitive tasks, document key processes, and set limits on individual workloads (e.g., no more than 10 open tasks per person).
The Problem: When Work Depends on Individual Effort
Warning Signs of Heroics-Dependent Work
Organizations that rely heavily on individual effort tend to show predictable patterns. For starters, critical knowledge is often concentrated in one person, creating a bottleneck. If that person is unavailable, progress halts. Task lists grow faster than teams can handle, leaving no room to focus on long-term goals. Engineers or operators often spend over 50% of their time on repetitive, manual tasks - what Google's SRE teams refer to as "toil" - instead of building systems to reduce future workloads [2].
These teams are constantly interrupted, stuck in a firefighting mode where success depends on overtime and weekend work. Leaders mistakenly celebrate those who "push through" under pressure, confusing endurance with resilience. As Benjamin Laker and Yelena Kalyuzhnova from Henley Business School put it, "The more a team relies on heroic effort, the more fragile it becomes" [3]. Over time, these patterns lead to deeper, systemic breakdowns.
What Happens When Systems Depend on Heroics
Ignoring these warning signs allows the system to deteriorate further. Heroics may temporarily mask problems, but they prevent organizations from addressing the root causes. When individuals step in to fill gaps, the system doesn’t improve - it merely stumbles along until the next crisis. This approach erodes trust within teams. Processes become unreliable, collaboration declines, and mistakes multiply as the workload becomes unmanageable [2].
Burnout is inevitable. People hide their exhaustion behind a "mask of competence" until someone finally breaks or leaves, taking critical knowledge with them [5]. Without proper systems in place, organizations lose the ability to manage daily tasks effectively. Flexibility without structure isn’t agility - it’s an unsustainable workload that collapses under real pressure [3].
Examples from Small Businesses and Enterprises
These challenges aren’t limited to large companies; they’re just as visible in small businesses. For large enterprises, like Google's SRE teams, recovery required deliberate system design to address these issues at scale [2].
In small businesses, the problem often plays out in critical, day-to-day situations. The owner becomes the go-to person for every escalation. A single employee might be the only one who knows how invoicing works, how to schedule jobs, or how to manage supplier relationships. When that person takes time off, everything slows - or stops entirely. The business may seem functional, but its fragility becomes obvious the moment someone is unavailable. It’s not a resilient system; it’s one that depends entirely on constant availability from key individuals.
The Solution: Building Systems That Work Without Heroics
Design Elements That Replace Heroics
Reliable systems aren't built on last-minute heroics - they rely on thoughtful design. One key element is standardized work, which lays out the exact steps for completing a task. This eliminates guesswork, reduces inconsistencies, and makes it easy to spot when something's off. As Taiichi Ohno famously said, "Without a standard, there can be no improvement" [4].
Another crucial feature is visible queues and handoffs, which make workflows transparent. When everyone can see what’s being worked on, what’s waiting, and where bottlenecks are forming, the system can adjust itself without needing someone to step in and save the day. Shared decision rules also play a big role - they define when to escalate, who approves what, and where boundaries lie. This spreads decision-making across the team, avoiding bottlenecks at a single desk.
Documented escalation paths are equally important. They spell out how and when to involve others, ensuring that knowledge isn’t locked in one person’s head. Finally, regular operating rhythms - like scheduled check-ins, triage sessions, and recovery periods - help the system absorb pressure without forcing people to work late nights or weekends [3]. Together, these design elements not only prevent chaos but also help teams shift from constantly reacting to planning ahead.
What Deming, Senge, and Ton Teach About Systems
Experts like Deming, Senge, and Ton have shown why focusing on systems, rather than individuals, is essential. Deming argued that most problems come from flawed systems, not from people [1]. His Fourteen Points stress that improving outcomes requires fixing the structures that shape work, not blaming workers. If success depends on extraordinary effort, the system itself is broken.
Peter Senge’s idea of shared mental models highlights why documentation is so important. When teams share a clear understanding of workflows and decision-making, they encounter fewer surprises and less friction. Zeynep Ton, in her book The Good Jobs Strategy, shows how companies that invest in clear processes, proper staffing, and a bit of operational breathing room perform better and see lower turnover.
How This Works in Practice
A real-world example comes from mid-2016, when a Google Internal Storage SRE team - responsible for services like Gmail and Drive - lost two-thirds of its members, including the manager. Left with a massive backlog of months’ worth of interrupts, the remaining engineers held a two-day triage session. They mapped out responsibilities, redefined priorities, automated simple tasks, and documented self-service processes. This allowed the smaller team to clear the backlog in just 48 hours. They also set a new rule: no team member could have more than 10 open tickets at a time [2]. This crisis-driven redesign shows how clear processes can lead to rapid recovery, even under extreme pressure.
Small businesses can apply the same principles on a smaller scale. For example, an HVAC contractor might document every step of the job intake process - how estimates are prepared, materials ordered, and scheduling conflicts resolved - so any trained employee can handle it, not just the owner. A design studio could cross-train team members on client onboarding and invoicing, removing bottlenecks when only one person knows how billing works. Adding strategic slack, like a small resource buffer, helps absorb unexpected demands without spiraling into chaos [3]. At RESTRAT, we work with SMB Studio clients in Central Texas to put these systems in place, helping business owners avoid burnout and build processes that run smoothly without constant firefighting. These examples highlight how system-based solutions create resilience and efficiency.
Why Systems Thinking Is So Important
Heroics-Driven vs. System-Driven Organizations
Side-by-Side Comparison
The key difference between heroics-driven and system-driven organizations lies in how they manage pressure. Heroics-driven organizations rely heavily on individual effort to compensate for flawed systems, while system-driven organizations focus on creating structures that handle challenges without overburdening individuals. This distinction becomes even clearer when examining their core traits side by side.
Deming's research highlights that most workplace issues are rooted in poor system design [1]. When organizations celebrate last-minute crisis management, they inadvertently reward the symptoms of broken systems. In contrast, recognizing proactive planning and prevention builds resilience and stability [3]. The table below showcases these opposing characteristics:
Characteristic | Heroics-Driven | System-Driven |
Dependency | Relies on a few key individuals with concentrated knowledge. | Emphasizes cross-trained teams, documented processes, and shared authority. |
Reliability | Vulnerable to errors when key individuals are absent or overwhelmed. | Built to withstand pressure, minimizing disruptions. |
Scalability | Limited by the capacity and memory of individuals. | Designed for growth with repeatable processes and smooth onboarding. |
Burnout Risk | High; overuse of a few individuals can mask exhaustion as dedication. | Low; work structures promote recovery and balanced workloads. |
Problem Solving | Focuses on reactive crisis management. | Prioritizes proactive planning and systemic solutions. |
"Resilience is not about how long people can keep sprinting. It's about how intelligently leaders design the course." - Benjamin Laker and Yelena Kalyuzhnova, Professors, Henley Business School [3]
This comparison underscores a critical point: sustainable performance comes from well-designed systems, not individual heroics. System-driven organizations eliminate the need for constant overexertion, protecting both productivity and employee well-being. This approach defines businesses that thrive over the long term, setting them apart from those that crumble under the weight of relying too much on individual effort.
What Changes When You Design for Systems
Stability Without Sacrifice
When organizations focus on designing resilient systems, the most immediate shift is predictable and stress-free operations. Workflows become smoother, allowing teams to plan vacations without disrupting operations. New hires can get up to speed more quickly because processes are documented, not just stored in someone's head. The pressure moves away from individuals having to push through challenges and instead relies on the system's ability to handle strain.
"The best leaders don't ask people to be tougher. They make toughness less necessary." - Benjamin Laker and Yelena Kalyuzhnova, Henley Business School [3]
This isn’t about asking people to slack off - it’s about making the work itself less dependent on extraordinary effort. For example, a small business, like a contractor, might document its estimating process and train team members to manage scheduling. Instead of the business owner being the go-to problem-solver for every issue, the company builds resilience through clear processes. With defined escalation paths for job site problems, the system absorbs the challenges, not the individual. This approach not only stabilizes day-to-day operations but also creates a strong foundation to tackle future hurdles.
Why This Matters Going Forward
Operational stability does more than make today’s work easier - it positions organizations for long-term success in an uncertain talent landscape. Talent shortages and workforce volatility aren’t going away anytime soon. Organizations that rely on heroic efforts risk compounding burnout, which erodes institutional knowledge, slows productivity, increases turnover, and undermines trust over time.
System-focused organizations spread pressure across their structure instead of concentrating it on a handful of key people [3]. They prioritize prevention over constant crisis management, fostering a culture where planning and foresight are valued more than last-minute fixes [3]. By making abnormalities visible as soon as they arise, these systems address issues early, avoiding the need for heroic interventions [4].
As W. Edwards Deming famously pointed out, around 94% of workplace issues stem from system-level problems, while only 6% are tied to individual performance [1]. Organizations that treat performance as solely an individual challenge often waste time addressing the wrong 6%. By redesigning systems, they can tackle the root causes and achieve sustainable, long-term results.
Key Takeaways
Heroics reveal broken systems. If your operations depend on someone’s memory, availability, or willingness to go above and beyond, the solution isn’t more effort - it’s a better system.
Resilience is built through structure, not sacrifice. Sustainable performance comes from systems that include clear workflows, shared decision-making rules, clear decision rights, visible queues, and consistent operating rhythms that don’t hinge on any one person.
Growth requires deliberate design. Organizations that reduce reliance on individuals scale more effectively, protect their teams from burnout, and create operations that can support genuine growth. Otherwise, they risk mistaking fragility for dedication.
FAQs
How can small businesses create systems that reduce reliance on individuals?
Small businesses can create reliable systems by focusing on workflows that are clear, repeatable, and not dependent on any single person. This means documenting crucial processes, using visual tools to map workflows, and setting up decision rules to keep tasks running smoothly, even when someone is unavailable.
Take common operations like onboarding new clients, managing inventory, or handling customer inquiries. Standardizing these tasks with step-by-step guides, shared tools, and clear handoff protocols ensures consistency. This approach reduces disruptions, keeps work moving during absences, and avoids burnout caused by relying too heavily on specific team members.
Shifting the focus from individual effort to well-designed systems helps small businesses improve reliability, ease stress, and lay a solid foundation for long-term growth.
How can we identify and reduce dependence on individual heroics in our organization?
To reduce reliance on individual heroics, start by analyzing workflows to identify areas where critical tasks or knowledge depend too much on a single person. Common signs include work halting when someone is unavailable or frequent problem-solving based on memory and reactive efforts.
A practical solution involves creating well-documented processes, standardizing essential workflows, and using visible queues and clear handoffs to ensure continuity, no matter who is on hand. Cross-training team members and establishing formal escalation paths can also help distribute knowledge and eliminate bottlenecks caused by over-reliance on one individual.
Encouraging a mindset that prioritizes strong systems over individual effort is key. When organizations focus on building reliable processes, they can consistently deliver results without requiring extraordinary efforts, paving the way for sustainable and scalable operations.
Why is documenting workflows essential for creating resilient systems?
Documenting workflows is a smart way to keep processes clear and consistent, cutting down on the need to rely on memory or individual effort. By laying out how tasks are done, businesses can spot inefficiencies, standardize their methods, and keep things running smoothly - even when key team members are out of the picture. This kind of clarity helps avoid disruptions and ensures work doesn’t grind to a halt during absences.
Having clear documentation also helps teams stay on the same page, making collaboration easier and decisions more aligned. It creates predictable, repeatable outcomes - essential for keeping things steady and reliable. For small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), this can be a game-changer. It reduces the risk of burnout, lessens reliance on a few key players, and keeps operations steady during vacations or unexpected events. In short, documenting workflows builds stronger systems, helping businesses stay consistent and resilient over the long term.