"These places have incredibly sophisticated performance frameworks, coaching programs, design systems, review processes. They've invested years into building cultures where the average quality bar is high and talent is supposedly evenly distributed across their teams. And yet. When something orbit-shifting comes up, a decision that could reshape their trajectory, a gnarly opportunity they need to nail, leadership doesn't just route it through the normal channels. They call the same handful of people. Every single time."
"For the longest time, I assumed this pattern in my own team meant I was failing as a leader. Whenever something critical came up, a tough technical decision, a strategic bet that could reshape where we were headed, I'd find myself reaching for the same people. It didn't matter what their official assignments were. When it really mattered, I went to my rockstars."
Mature organizations with robust processes and distributed talent still route high-stakes problems to a small set of trusted individuals. Sophisticated performance frameworks, coaching, and review systems raise baseline quality but do not remove reliance on perceived rockstars when outcomes are critical. Leaders bypass formal channels and assignments for orbit-shifting decisions because of tacit knowledge, confidence, and proven track records. Persistent dependence on a handful of people creates bottlenecks, limits scalability, and increases organizational risk. Attempts to solve the pattern through coaching and systems often fail unless deliberate succession planning, distributed ownership, and exposure to high-stakes work are cultivated.
Read at hvpandya.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]