07 May
I talked to a leader last week whose entire executive team are single points of failure.
With the growth they’re planning, this is not sustainable. It’s actually dangerous.
A single point of failure is when only one person, supplier, or system holds something critical together. If they go away, things break.
This shows up in a lot of ways:
One person who knows how to complete a critical task that no one else understands. One individual responsible for generating a bulk of your revenue. One supplier you rely on so heavily that if they shut down, you can’t operate. One person who holds the relationships, the context, the “why” behind how things work.
If any of these disappeared tomorrow, what happens?
You’re one resignation, one illness, one supplier shutdown away from scrambling to pick up the pieces.
And yet most businesses don’t think about this until it’s too late. Until the person leaves. Until the vendor folds. Until the knowledge walks out the door.
How do you find the single points of failure in your business?
Look through your operations. Is there anyone with a specific skill set that others rely on completely? Someone who performs a function that holds things together?
Is there one person responsible for a bulk of your revenue? One person solely responsible for a critical process?
Is there one supplier or vendor you depend on to deliver? What happens if they can’t?
Now imagine each of these disappeared. What breaks? What knowledge is lost? What would you have to rebuild from scratch?
The fix is redundancy.
Not duplication. Redundancy. Built-in backups so one failure doesn’t take down the whole system.
Cross-train so critical knowledge lives in more than one head. Document so processes can be followed by anyone. Build relationships with backup vendors before you need them. Create systems that don’t depend on any single person, supplier, or point of contact.
The goal isn’t to make anyone replaceable. It’s to make your business resilient.
Single points of failure are risks you’re carrying whether you see them or not.
The question is whether you find them now, on your terms, or later, when something breaks.
Where is the single point of failure hiding in your business?