Sometimes I wonder about this term process.

There is, IMO, something called process that is needed to maintain a basic system that is geared towards a goal; And then, there is “over process” that becomes a goal in itself. There must have been a time when the ‘over process’ was merely a process.I used to think that we (as in Indians) are especially ritualistic when it comes to our processes because it possibly derived from cultural ethos. Then I compared notes with friends who work in different ecosystems across the world, and the one thing we all vent about the role of  over processification’ in our lives.  It cuts across industries and continents. It seems to be a universal malady.

source : here

The question i ponder on, is when does something that is put in to maintain a basic system ‘decorum’ become the end in itself? Does one become so ‘process’ oriented that one neuters all risk taking instincts; all spontaneity, stifle all creativity, simply because there is no mind space left. But, isn’t the purpose of a process to free you up from the mundane to allow you to do all these things.

Is this why start ups beat market leaders all the time – because market leaders are so busy being process oriented, they forget that they need to think out of the box – that the cost of gaining all approvals from within the system would be so long that the opportunity would possibly be gone. When the process becomes the deterrent to work (other than guiding stuff through the process) then we are going to have a problem on our hands.

I wonder what will happen if you rewrote processes from scratch – would the world tilt on its’ axis or something ?