Listen instead on your Monday Morning Drive:

If you’re like most businesses in our industry, you’re facing a full pipeline and subsequent hiring challenges. You’re rushing to document processes, hoping to expedite onboarding while still doing high-quality work.

But what if you’re approaching hiring backward?

The Hidden Trap of Process Documentation

I recently spoke with a business owner who told me his company couldn’t address its strategic challenges until he finished a year-long process documentation project.

He was following advice from his business operating system… and he looked devastated when I told him this is a backward approach.

Documenting processes in a dysfunctional business is like photographing a car crash. You’re not fixing issues; you’re preserving something broken.

Talent vs. Documentation

If you need extensive process documentation to hold your company together, you have the wrong people. Smart, capable professionals document their processes to share information and subdivide tasks — not as a crutch for inadequate skills.

Think about automated external defibrillators (AEDs) — you probably have one in your office. They come with step-by-step voice instructions so anyone can save a life in an emergency. That’s appropriate for AEDs because we can’t expect everyone to be a medical professional. But do you want that same approach in the operating room?

I’d rather work with one talented person with no documentation than two underqualified workers with perfect documentation. If you document processes so anyone off the street can do the job, I don’t want you running my show.

Undocumenting Your Processes

Instead of documenting every step, consider removing instructions that competent professionals don’t need.

Start by stripping away anything that doesn’t define what success looks like. If your documentation explains how to do a good job rather than what a good job looks like, you’re planning for the wrong talent.

In today’s market, scalable companies need half as many people, but those people need to be twice as good. The professionals you should hire don’t need basic instructions. They need clear objectives.

Start With the End in Mind

Let’s use show prep as an example.

A successful show prep means:

• All equipment and accessories are correctly pulled
• Everything is properly labeled
• Items are documented and ready to ship
• The crew knows exactly what they’re getting and when
• Changes and challenges are clearly communicated

Once you’ve defined success, work backwards. In show prep, the final step is the warehouse manager sending the load manifest to the crew. Before that:

1. Equipment is loaded for safe unload
2. Priority items are positioned correctly
3. Each item is checked against the shipping manifest
4. Labels are verified
5. Sub-rentals are confirmed
6. The prep lead signs off on completion

This backward approach keeps you focused on outcomes rather than getting lost in front-loaded procedures.

Dead Ends and Bottlenecks

When I assess a business’s processes, I look for two red flags:

Dead Ends: These appear when someone says, “It depends.” This means there’s no clear path forward — people are using judgment calls instead of following a process. While this can work, especially on show sites where we often need to think on our feet, it’s not a reliable system for growth.

Bottlenecks: These occur when multiple processes flow through one person or checkpoint. Think of bottlenecks as oxygen cutoffs. They starve subsequent steps of resources and create inefficiency.

Rethinking Scalability

Ten years ago, the path to scaling a business meant creating foolproof documentation so you could hire less qualified people. Companies would plug gaps with warm bodies, hand them a manual, and expect them to self-train because managers were too busy to properly supervise.

That model is obsolete. In 2024, successful scaling requires smart hiring and strategic talent development. Your core team, especially those handling planning and critical operations, must bring expertise and judgment to the table.

The Smart Way Forward

Process documentation isn’t your starting point. It’s an output of having the right people doing the right things.

Start by:

1. Hiring skilled professionals who can think on their feet
2. Defining what success looks like for each role
3. Letting your team determine the best path to those outcomes
4. Creating documentation only where it adds value

Building Better Processes

Good processes aren’t about controlling every movement. They’re about creating clear paths to success.

By working backward from defined outcomes, you:

• Reduce unnecessary steps
• Focus on what matters
• Allow for smart improvisation
• Create scalable systems

A process isn’t good just because it’s documented. It’s only worth documenting if it consistently delivers results.

Moving Forward

Don’t let process documentation delay your growth. Hire smart people now. Define what success looks like. Let your documentation grow organically from what works, not from what you hope might work.

This approach might not make process consultants happy, but it’ll make your business run better. And that’s what matters.

Ready to build better processes in your live events business? Let’s talk about how to make it happen.