Walk into many organizations today and you will see processes that run on a philosophy of “that’s how we’ve always done it”, out of date IT systems held together with the digital equivalent of “duct tape and bubble gum”, and crisis after crisis solved with a hope and a prayer to few silent “saviors”. While many justify putting off maintenance of core administrative infrastructure by prioritization of sales and day-to-day operations, this neglect is catching up with many organizations with devastating ramifications.

For those who like to skim, this article will address What’s going on, What this looks like, and 3 ways leaders can address follow any of the links here to skip ahead.

You know who’s been skinny dipping when the tide goes out

(Paraphrased) Warren Buffet

What’s going on

One does not need to look much further than America’s crumbling infrastructure to see how this trend has taken fire across many local governments resulting in 1 in 3 bridges needing repair or replacement¹, lead in drinking water in places like Baltimore, MD², and Flint, MI³, and blackouts due to an aging infrastructure built in the 60’s and 70’s⁴. While local governments chase ideas like smart cities⁵, tax payers are discovering that government’s core job of maintaining our infrastructure has been largely ignored costing billions as short-term savings on maintenance were traded for increased long-term costs⁶.

The world outside government hardly makes the news as it is far less forgiving. Organizations with crumbling infrastructure simply either fade into the background as they lose market share, for the nonprofit /church crowd their ability to make an impact fades, or worse, like a heart attack waiting to happen, a sudden, unfortunate event turns fatal when it reveals the organization’s inability to properly respond and kills it.

No organization plans to end up this way. In fact, therein lies the issue, they did not plan. Maintenance is not sexy, but direct intentional consideration and securing the foundations of your organization means the difference between your organization leading the way into the future or crumbling under the weight of it.

What this looks like

The project was only supposed to be roughly two months, but as I swiped my badge through the security of the grandiose, gothic-style building, it had been over a year. Originally brought in to address what seemed to be a small issue in their HR information system and provide temporary support, I was now running a small team who had uncovered a system that was collapsing under its own weight.

Unreconcilable

On this day, I would get the express privilege of sitting for the second of three days with their internal audit team. Neglect to update and maintain their IT systems had caused pervasive, and costly data issues, that had been ongoing for so long, even I, after months pouring through data, was not sure we would be able to determine what the correct numbers were.

Following the audit, in an attempt to sidestep the costs of reconciliation, the organization tried to implement new sweeping policy changes that might start the clock afresh. However, their unionized workforce saw through it and threatened to strike should said policies be implemented leaving leadership in a bind.

Weak foundation

As painful as this particular issue was, it was only the beginning of sorrows. A patchwork of poorly integrated acquisitions threatened any real attempts to streamline and benefit from synergies driving up corresponding costs. Technology had been disrupting their industry for years, but the culture, or lack thereof, reporting structures, and processes, had not been adapted to respond. Overtime problems that had about the equivalent of a hairline fracture in the foundation, had spidered across the organization creating irreparable structural issues.

Unfortunately, for this organization, the response by the time I arrived was too little, too late. A toxic work culture was hemorrhaging the people experts needed to turn it around; thus, my team stepping in. Leadership had determined that splitting the old culture from the new was the only way to proceed which followed with my team and I hiking across the large metropolitan city they were located in as we were tasked with the nearly impossible objective of trying to help both organizations split ties cleanly.

Rebuilding a legacy

Where are they today? Well, the organization no longer owns either of the historic buildings I worked in. Multiple divestitures of previously acquired organizations have been undergone. After nearly a decade, both organizations are limping their way back to profitability and hopefully one day they may achieve the previous success that made their original company a respected leader in their industry for over a century.

How leaders can address… and Nikkiforos can help

1. Poke your head up and a take a look around

A living organization is a busy one. Amidst the busyness of running operations, managing customers, and controlling costs, often core foundational elements get overlooked — org charts, processes, IT infrastructure, recruiting strategy, and accountability structures. As leaders pursue the next big thing, the core slowly rots from within.

However, like the frog in boiling water, those closest to these foundational weaknesses may not even see them anymore. This is why it’s so important for leaders to stop and look up once in a while. The team will always be busy, there will always be crisis, there will always be some new opportunity. If leaders are not intentional, they may wake up one day and find the foundations of their organization collapsing underneath them. Depending on the situation, it may be helpful to bring in an outside consultant, to provide focused outside of the business as usual and help your team see the forest from the trees.

2. Regularly review and optimize ways of working

Your workforce infrastructure —people, processes, and tools—needs constant optimization to serve the organization effectively. Too often, we assume that things are working well, but the biggest pain points often come not from within a single team, but from how teams interact and hand off work. This is why it’s so important to take a step back and review things end-to-end.  

While automation and new technology are often hailed as the all-around solution, an estimated 87.5% of transformations fail⁷. It’s not uncommon to see workers resort to tools like Excel or pen and paper if the new, pricey, system was not properly set up or underlying ways of working were not adjusted to accommodate.

Optimizing ways of working across teams is a distinct undertaking by itself. It is important that organizations provide their teams help in facilitating the work above and beyond their business-as-usual activities. For larger organizations, this could mean having an internal change department, but more often than not, bringing in an external consultant skilled in journey mapping and change management is the best approach to making real progress.

3. Address Cults of Personality as They Arise

“Birds of a feather flock together” as the old saying goes is true in the workforce, including volunteers. Similarity in thinking, culture, expertise, and personality creates a bond and strength that’s crucial in team development. But as teams scale, unchecked cliques can become an organization’s undoing. Whether its nepotism, roles based on a person instead of the work (for more see our post “Superman Was a Fiction – The Pioneer’s Dilemma”), performance-killing group think, fiefdoms, silos, or stagnation, these problems emerge when cliques go unaddressed. Some firsthand examples:

• A leadership team stalled a multi-million-dollar merger because their similar hard-charging personalities clashed with no diplomats to balance.
• In another instance, a team focused on doing whatever it takes, lacked skeptical thinkers, resulting in wasted resources and unnecessary sacrifice.

Consequently, as organizations grow It’s essential to regularly review team structures and org charts to ensure they align with the organization’s mission and needs. Doing so ensures better process results, spreads institutional knowledge, balances workloads, and provides backups for the unexpected. Teams and recruiting processes may also need to be assessed to ensure the right mix of talent and perspectives. In some areas, like accounting, similar personality types are expected. In other areas, especially leadership and strategy, an interdisciplinary approach with perspectives from a range of personalities, experience, and cultural backgrounds is crucial to success

In the end, neglecting the foundation of your organization is a costly gamble, one that many, unfortunately, lose. While it’s easy to chase the next big thing, real sustainability lies in nurturing the infrastructure that supports everything else—people, processes, and technology. Leaders must be proactive, constantly checking for weak spots and optimizing their core systems before it is too late. Investing in your foundation now is not just smart; it may mean the difference between thriving and simply surviving as the world moves forward. Don’t wait for the tide to go out—make sure your organization is built to withstand it.

¹American Road and Transportation Builders Association. “Bridge Report.” Accessed May 17, 2025. https://artbabridgereport.org/.

² Rohan Mattu. “Baltimore City, County residents asked to check their water pipes for lead and copper inventory.” December 13, 2023. https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/baltimore-city-county-water-pipes-lead-and-copper-inventory/.

³ Melissa Denchak. “Flint Water Crisis: Everything You Need to Know.” October 8^th, 2024. https://www.nrdc.org/stories/flint-water-crisis-everything-you-need-know#update.

⁴ U.S. Department of Energy. “What Does It Take to Modernize the U.S. Electric Grid.” October 19^th, 2023. https://www.energy.gov/gdo/articles/what-does-it-take-modernize-us-electric-grid.

⁵ Phil Goldstein. “How Los Angeles Plans to Become a Smarter City by the 2028 Olympics.” July 29, 2021. https://statetechmagazine.com/article/2021/07/how-los-angeles-plans-become-smarter-city-2028-olympics.

⁶ Kevin T. “Uncovering the Hidden Costs of Poor Infrastructure Maintenance.” Accessed May 17, 2025. https://infrastructurist.com/uncovering-the-hidden-costs-of-poor-infrastructure-maintenance/.

⁷ Didier Bonnet. “3 Stages of a Successful Digital Transformation.” September 20, 2022. https://hbr.org/2022/09/3-stages-of-a-successful-digital-transformation.