THE PROBLEM CYCLE
Broken processes don’t start broken.
They become broken — through shortcuts, quick fixes, and sheer pressure to just get the job done.
Here’s how it plays out:
Symptoms + Resulting Behaviours = Problems
- The symptoms aren’t always obvious.
- The behaviours seem like “just how it is.”
- But the longer it runs, the worse it gets.
And that’s when inefficiency becomes your normal.
This cycle shows up in finance and other teams alike — repeated every month, with the same issues, same firefighting, and no time to step back.

Low Systems and Applications Knowledge
You can’t use the tools properly if no-one knows what they can do.
Resulting Behaviours
- Tools underused or misused
- People don’t realise what’s possible
Problems
- Opportunities missed
- Manual effort stays high, whilst automation exists
Unreliable and Inefficient Processes
Thrown-together processes that fall apart under pressure.
Resulting Behaviours
- Manual workarounds built on the fly by already stretched teams
- No formal testing or documentation
- Built around ‘what we think we need’
Problems
- Opportunities missed
- Manual effort stays high, whilst automation exists
- Not future proofed
- Don’t meet what the business needs
Caused by Inefficient Processes
Too busy fixing fires to prevent them.
Resulting Behaviours
- Known issues get ignored
- No time or headspace for proper re-design
- Month end always around the corner
Problems
- Processes get slower and messier
- Team frustration grows
System & Application Spaghetti
Too many tools, not enough flow — chaos in the cracks.
Resulting Behaviours
- Multiple Systems/Applications aren’t connected
- More patches and more spreadsheets fill the gaps
- Multiple sources of data
- Data integrity issues
Problems
- Multiple ‘versions of the truth’
- Manual effort stays high, whilst automation exists
- Neverending reconciliations
- Inaccurate reporting
Failing Processes = Poor Controls
Risky workarounds replacing proper guardrails.
Resulting Behaviours
- Corners cut
- Missing or ‘complex’ audit trails
- Over-reliance on people
- Over-reliance on ‘JFDI mentality’
Problems
- Duplicate/Unauthorised payments
- Under/Overstating balances
- Data integrity issues not captured
- Reputational risk
- VAT/Tax issues
- Non-compliance with regulators
“Because We’ve Always Done It That Way”
“It works well enough” becomes the excuse for never improving.
Resulting Behaviours
- Reliance on
workarounds that ‘do the job’ - Templates reused for years without review
- Legacy reports built on legacy logic
- Spreadsheets labelled
‘DO NOT TOUCH’ - Lack of ownership
Problems
- White picket fence mentality
- Inefficiencies are
accepted as normal - Risk multiplies over
time - Some people resist change, even if it will improve their jobs
- Nobody knows why ‘the process’ exists, they just follow it.