The cardinal sin in operations is to do the wrong thing the right way
I’m reminded of this every time I work with a client to organise their sustainability data.
Real organisations have messy, complicated systems. They’re built over time. They’re acquired with new companies. They’re replaced, extended and modified over time.
All this is normal. It’s organic change, Small decisions made over time.
The problem happens when you try and take that mess and fit it into a preconceived system.
We know that any system has to match the complexity of the situation it’s trying to control.
Most don’t do that. Their world model just isn’t able to capture every permutation and combination of the real world.
So what works?
Building bottom up works.
Starting with the systems and data as they are, understanding what is where, and then pulling out chunks of data that can be organised.
That’s a flexible, extensible system that can adapt and grow as the organisation changes.
Because there’s one thing systems people have learned from bitter experience.
As soon as you get your system working, what it needs to do is going to change again.
Handcrafted insight 