Operational Dependency

D02 - Key Person Redundancy

Definition

A structural reliance on a single person, vendor, or system where the absence or failure of that element would cause immediate, significant operational disruption, whether in the form of a team member's expertise, a vendor's service delivery, or a technology system's availability.

Operational dependencies are natural and often unavoidable in growing organizations. The problem is not their existence. It is their invisibility.

An unmapped dependency is an unmanaged risk, whereas a mapped dependency is a managed risk.

Indicators

• No inventory of your organization's operational dependencies — people, vendors, and critical systems, has ever been produced.
• A dependency you were unaware of has surfaced during an incident or audit.
• You can name your most critical dependencies but not their severity score or mitigation status.

Quick Win

• List your three most critical people or vendor relationships.
• For each, ask: "Is there a tested alternative if this person or vendor were suddenly unavailable?"

Assess

• Take the HQ Score Assessment

Apply

• The Key Person Backup Coverage
• The Vendor Contract Audit Workbook

Related

• Single Point of Failure
• Vendor Dependency
• Switching Cost
• Key Person Risk