Everyday Run State: Pro Edition

Sometimes, you run into a process bottleneck that just… won’t budge.

Maybe it’s a system you can’t customize.
Maybe it’s a vendor you can’t switch.
Maybe it’s a person you wish you could replace (we’ll come back to that one).

In supply chain management, we talk a lot about constraints - the one part of the process that determines the pace and capacity of the entire system. If you can’t remove the constraint, you’re left with two choices:

1. Explode the process entirely

2. Redesign everything else around the constraint

Let’s talk about how this shows up in our day to day.

Option 1: Fire the Process Owner (Just Kidding… Sort of)

We’ve all had the thought:
“If only Bob wasn’t the one running this process, everything would flow better.”

While you could take that literally, the more practical version is to ask:

• Does this role actually need to exist in its current form?

• Can this responsibility be reassigned, automated, or even eliminated?

for example:
👉 If procurement is always slow because only one person can approve POs - ask whether this gatekeeping step is still necessary, or if you can set thresholds for auto-approvals instead.

Option 2: Eliminate the Process Entirely

This is where creativity comes in.

If something can’t be fixed, can you design it out of the workflow?

• Can you move from manual steps to automated ones?

• Can you stop offering a service that’s operationally painful and not profitable?

Example:
👉 I worked with an MSP that was drowning in custom quotes for small cloud services. We simplified their offering into three standard bundles. No more custom quoting. No more back-and-forth. That entire process (and its bottleneck) disappeared.

Option 3: Lower Your Expectations

Sometimes… you just have to be realistic.

If the bottleneck is immovable - like a third-party vendor or a compliance requirement—then the only answer is to adjust your downstream expectations:

• Set longer lead times.

• Communicate more clearly to clients.

• Build buffers into your project schedules.

This isn’t giving up, it’s being smart about where you can (and can’t) make change.

Wrapping It Up:

In supply chain terms:
You can’t make the factory run faster than its slowest machine.

In business terms:
When you hit an unmovable bottleneck:
✅ Reassign it.
✅ Remove it.
✅ Rethink your expectations.

The worst thing you can do is build faster systems around an unchanged constraint.
It just creates frustration at every level.

Question for you:
What’s one bottleneck in your business that you’ve just learned to live with?
Hit reply and let me know, I always read your responses.