“Only that person knows.” One of the most serious problems on the IT floor is over-reliance on individuals. A staffer’s departure or absence turns directly into business risk. This article explains how to standardize IT department work and the practical points for preventing individual dependence.
Dependence A state where a departure/absence is an immediate risk | Standardization A state where anyone can handle it at the same quality | Systematization From individual reliance to organizational capability |
Running on a “system,” not relying on a “person”
Work standardization means bringing work that once depended on a specific person to a state where anyone can perform it by the same steps, at the same quality. Through documenting procedures, unifying rules, and setting up tools, you run work on a “system” rather than on a “person.”
The IT team is especially prone to individual dependence. Knowledge of each system and its operation lives only in a few people’s heads — leave that unaddressed and the moment they leave, work stops.
“”Only that person knows” is not praise — it’s a risk.”
Relying on a specific person may look efficient, but it’s a major vulnerability for the organization.
Why it can’t be left alone
🚨 Work stops on departure/absence The moment the person is gone, no one can respond and work halts. The most serious risk. | 📉 Quality variance Quality and judgment change depending on who handles it, so service levels aren’t stable. |
🐌 Hard handover and training Because procedures aren’t written down, handover takes an enormous amount of time. | 🔒 Improvement stalls Work becomes a black box, so you can’t spot problems or improve. |
Escaping individual dependence
From visibility to sticking
The key to success is not to rush into writing manuals, but to proceed step by step.
Targets to tackle first
If you’re unsure where to start, it’s effective to begin with “high-frequency, dependence-prone work” like the following.
Don’t stop at making it
Standardization is not a one-off project. Reviewing continuously through the PDCA cycle is what produces a standard that actually works.
P Plan Define the work to standardize and the goals. | → | D Do Turn it into a manual and put it into real operation. | → | C Check Operate and surface problems and friction. | → | A Act Update the manual and evolve the standard. |
Three points to watch
Leveraging an external partner
Standardized work brings a big added benefit: it becomes easier to entrust to an external partner. With clear procedures, quality holds even when outsourced. Standardization is a shortcut to both goals — easing the IT team’s burden and effective outsourcing.
BAP Solution Japan Co., Ltd. — a software development and offshore company serving the Japanese market, with a legal entity and offices in Tokyo and Osaka. BAP supports everything from work standardization to operation & maintenance.
Talk to BAP — free consultation →
Start from an inventory of your work. We propose a structure that doesn’t depend on individuals.
