The Ops System Upgrade: Moving Beyond Founder-Driven Decision Making

Welcome back to the 121st edition of Nord Media

I’ve always believed instinct is one of the most underrated skills in business.

Some of the best founders I know built their companies by trusting their gut. Making fast calls with no roadmap, no data, just a sense of what felt right. That energy is most definitely real. 

And it’s POWERFUL.

It’s what got me off the ground… but the further I got in my journey, the more I realized:

The same instinct that got me off the ground running won’t be what’ll get me into the sky flying.

And I’m not alone.

I’ve seen countless founders hit the same wall where the business outgrows their intuition, and suddenly decisions stall, teams wait, and progress grinds.

So today, I’m breaking down:

• Why founder instinct becomes a liability after a certain point

• What scalable decision-making systems actually look like

• And a framework to help you implement this in your own business

Let’s get into it.

Instinct = Liability

Founder-led decision-making works, until it doesn’t.

Here’s what it looks like when instinct becomes a bottleneck at scale:

Decisions stall across the org

• Your marketing lead waits three days for budget sign-off. 

• Sales can’t close without your approval.

• Ops pauses vendor negotiations until you weigh in. 

• Every small delay compounds.

Decision fatigue sets in

• After 47 micro-decisions, the 48th gets a rushed, half-baked response.

• Quality drops from mental overload.

Your team stays dependent

• When every call runs through you, your team never builds the muscle to decide on their own.

• They execute, but they don’t own, and growth stalls.

Strategic thinking gets sidelined

• You’re stuck deciding on a $500 tool subscription…

•  Instead of figuring out how to reposition for Q4.

What once made you effective is now holding the business back.

And instinct, your greatest early-stage strength, has quietly become a liability.

Building Decision Infrastructure That Scales

The smartest founders are building systems that can make decisions without them.

Here’s what that looks like in practice:

Decision Authority Levels (By How Much The Decision Is “Worth”)

• $0-500: Direct reports can approve instantly 

• $500-5,000: Department heads with documentation 

• $5,000-25,000: Leadership team with business case 

• $25,000+: Founder involvement required

Outcome-Based Guidelines 

Instead of: "Check with me before changing anything." 

They use: "Any change that improves LTV without increasing CAC by more than 15% is pre-approved."

Exception Protocols 

Clear criteria for when decisions get escalated: 

• Affects multiple departments 

• Changes core positioning or pricing 

• Creates legal or compliance risk 

• Exceeds quarterly budget variance by 20%

This isn't about removing founder judgment. It's about applying it strategically instead of tactically.

Your Framework Implementation Guide

Start with your highest-volume, lowest-risk decisions and work your way up to more complex frameworks.

Week 1-2: Financial Decision Framework 

Create spending authority levels for your team: 

• Map current approval processes 

• Set dollar thresholds by role 

• Define documentation requirements 

• Communicate new authority levels

Week 3-4: Operational Decision Framework

Systematize recurring operational choices: 

• Vendor selection criteria 

• Project scope change protocols 

• Client communication escalation paths 

• Quality control standards

Month 2: Strategic Decision Framework 

Build frameworks for bigger choices: 

• Market opportunity evaluation criteria 

• Partnership assessment rubrics 

• Hiring decision scorecards 

• Product feature prioritization matrices

Month 3: Exception Management 

Refine what still requires founder input: 

• Crisis response protocols 

• Strategic pivot criteria 

• Major investment decisions 

• Culture and values alignment

What Success Looks Like

Companies that successfully build decision infrastructure see:

Operational Speed

• Significant reduction in decision bottlenecks within 90 days

• Faster response times to customer requests and market changes

Team Development

• Higher employee satisfaction due to increased autonomy

• Better decision quality as frameworks improve over time

Founder Leverage

• More time available for strategic initiatives

• Reduced stress from constant tactical decision-making

Final Thoughts

Your instincts got you this far, but instincts won’t help you scale past 1M.

The most successful founders evolve from making every decision to designing the systems that make great decisions inevitable.

This week, start your 30-day decision log. Track every choice that lands on your desk and ask: 

"Could this be systematized?"

The goal isn't to remove your judgment from the business. It's to apply it where it matters most.

Want to learn more? Connect with me on social 👇
LinkedIn • Instagram • Twitter 

Thank you for reading! I appreciate you.

Sincerely,
Kody

Disclaimer: Special thanks to TripleWhale and Alia for sponsoring today’s newsletter.