The pitfall of process

In early-stage businesses, processes are often haphazard or absent. Employees and owners shoot from the hip and let gut instinct to dictate how they do their job.

Eventually, this becomes unsustainable, and mature companies learn to institutionalize knowledge into well-documented processes. New hires are rigorously trained, and there are feedback loops in place for monitoring performance and making continuous refinements.

Soon, processes start to look like the solution to every problem. Be careful, though, not to let process become ingrained in company culture to the point where adherence to the rules takes priority over delighting customers.