When Revenue Still Depends on You
A business can earn millions and still remain a time liability when its operation depends on a founder continually sending instructions.
Developed from a conversation between Andy David and Pete Winn
Some multimillion-dollar companies still run through a founder sending instructions over WhatsApp. The arrangement is fast and convenient, but it leaves the company dependent on one person’s constant attention and judgement. From the outside, the revenue can make the business look like a valuable asset, but in practice, the founder may be working at four in the morning, missing holidays and carrying a business that can’t keep moving without them.
Decisions the founder makes through recognisable patterns can often be broken into pipelines and agents, with each part given a defined route instead of waiting for another message. Routine cases can then move through the operating process while the founder steps in when an exception still requires judgement.
Codifying those decisions also makes it possible for other people to operate the company without knowing everything the founder knows. They can follow the established logic and escalate unusual cases rather than relying on the founder for every answer. The goal isn’t to capture every judgement, but rather to move enough recurring decisions into the business itself that work continues seamlessly in between the founder’s interventions.