Overcoming Resistance

Your goal as Systems Champion is to build a fully systemised business. But between you and that goal stands one significant challenge … and it’s not documenting the systems themselves.

It’s bringing your team along with you.

Even though you’re excited to improve things for everyone, the reality is that change can be scary. Your teammates are used to doing things their way, and not everyone will jump at the chance to document their processes or adapt to new methods.

Over the years, as you could imagine, I’ve heard hundreds of excuses as to why teammates don’t follow processes. But when closely examined, these objections boil down into just three core excuses. They are the fundamental barriers that stand between Systems Champions and their vision of a well-ordered business.

The reality is, you can develop the most comprehensive, perfectly documented systems imaginable, but if your team doesn’t use them, they’re merely digital paperweights. Your success hinges entirely on team adoption. Let’s address these core excuses head-on:

Excuse #1: “I didn’t know how”¶

This is the most common excuse, and it’s exactly what it sounds like. Team members simply don’t know there’s a process to follow. We see this manifest in several ways. Proper training might be missing. Documentation could be unclear or hard to understand. Team members might not have access to the right information when they need it. Sometimes it’s as simple as confusion about the specific steps involved, or they might not even know what “good” looks like. What does success mean for this task?

This is actually the easiest excuse to address because it’s purely about information and access. Think prevention, not reaction. The goal is to make clarity the default state of your business. Put systems exactly where people need them, when they need them. Make accessing information easier than asking for help and ensure it’s never more than one click away at the moment it’s needed.

Having well-organised systems management software becomes critical here. This creates that single source of truth where team members can instantly find the guidance they need.

Excuse #2: “I didn’t know it was my job”¶

This excuse goes beyond just knowing how to do something. It’s about clarity of responsibility, and it’s more common than you might think. You’ll notice it when tasks aren’t being completed on time or when work starts falling through the cracks.

There’s often a general lack of accountability, and you’ll frequently hear confusion about who owns what parts of a process. This challenge typically arises due to unclear roles and responsibilities, and while it takes more effort to address than the first, it’s still relatively straightforward to solve by installing the right tools.

Leverage project management software. Create unmistakable handoff points between team members. Build checkpoints into your processes that make expectations impossible to miss.

Excuse #3: “I don’t want to”¶

This is the trickiest type of resistance to tackle because it’s really about motivation and engagement. You’ll hear various versions of this excuse: “I don’t have time,” “I don’t have the resources,” or “The old way works fine.” But here’s the truth: these are rarely about actual time or resource constraints. They’re about priorities.

When someone is truly motivated to do something, they find a way to prioritise it. This is the most challenging resistance to overcome because it requires addressing mindset and engagement, not just processes and procedures.

Now, with each of these three excuses there can be many other variations. However, when you boil things down, you will find 99 percent of all excuses will fall into one of these categories.

It’s important to understand at this point that as a Systems Champion, you’re not the company’s disciplinarian. Your role isn’t about enforcing rules or catching people doing things incorrectly. Instead, you’re there to create elegant systems that naturally bring clarity and structure to the workplace.

When done right, these systems make non-compliance obvious without you having to play detective. They give managers the practical tools they need to address issues efficiently. Most importantly, they set every team member up for success from day one. Think of yourself more as an architect of success than an enforcer of rules. You’re creating an environment where good processes naturally lead to good outcomes.