Your company shouldn’t run on “whoever remembers.” This piece breaks down why relying on one person’s brain is so expensive. Cognitively, emotionally, and operationally. And how to start shifting that load into real systems.
Love this! I’ve been her! I would also add have a central location for all information (we used notion) so that “the one who remembers” can keep saying “check notion” and eventually people learn to go there first.
Notion is my love! And that search function works wonders (not to mention the ai if you have it), but you have to train the people to go there for sure!
Yes it's the best! A bit of repetition required haha but eventually it turns into "I know I should check notion but..." and then finally they just check there first 😂
In the military it's the "quartermaster" - they're the person who know how to get things done vs how the policies and procedures says it should be done. Ie they're the one who remembers. We used to call it "no sign posts business" - new starters had not idea how to get going because nothing was written down 😳
This is a fantastic and painfully accurate diagnosis of a problem I've seen in so many growing teams. The concept of this role being a "ceiling" on growth is particularly sharp.
It makes me think about the other side of the equation: the career path of the "whoever remembers" person. They're often highly competent and indispensable, but being the human database can also trap them in a purely operational function.
Love this! I’ve been her! I would also add have a central location for all information (we used notion) so that “the one who remembers” can keep saying “check notion” and eventually people learn to go there first.
Notion is my love! And that search function works wonders (not to mention the ai if you have it), but you have to train the people to go there for sure!
Yes it's the best! A bit of repetition required haha but eventually it turns into "I know I should check notion but..." and then finally they just check there first 😂
Yepppp. At least they catch themselves.
Love your content, Katie! Every startup has that one person who is the Google Doc for everything. It's the most relatable kind of mess.
In the military it's the "quartermaster" - they're the person who know how to get things done vs how the policies and procedures says it should be done. Ie they're the one who remembers. We used to call it "no sign posts business" - new starters had not idea how to get going because nothing was written down 😳
😖 it seems to translate across many industries! Including the old school class project 🤣
This is a fantastic and painfully accurate diagnosis of a problem I've seen in so many growing teams. The concept of this role being a "ceiling" on growth is particularly sharp.
It makes me think about the other side of the equation: the career path of the "whoever remembers" person. They're often highly competent and indispensable, but being the human database can also trap them in a purely operational function.
This is true. And they are usually the last to shout about their accomplishments so they end up quietly kicking butt without a lot of acknowledgment.
Having a transparent efficient system is key
I’ve also seen this referred to as “the glue people.” critically important but also likely underpaid / undervalued.
Definitely!! There’s even an org called the Glue Club
Wow a relief after reading through, because I’m always been trying to have such a role in our small team whom I cannot stand losing…
Every company hits a wall when their work depends on one person’s memory.