Rescue becomes the system
A project lands because one senior colleague resolves every disputed priority. A review cycle finishes because one person knows how to obtain the approvals. A team meets its target by carrying work that belongs elsewhere.
These efforts can be necessary. When they become normal, the organisation depends on capacity and relationships it has never formally provided.
Look beyond reporting lines
Structure includes decision rights, priorities, handovers, capacity and measures. A new organisation chart can leave all of those unchanged.
Follow the work that repeatedly becomes difficult. Where does it wait? Which decision is reopened? Who reconciles incompatible demands? The people doing the work often know the practical arrangement better than a process diagram shows.
Change the condition behind the problem
The intervention should have a clear mechanism. A decision boundary can remove repeated approvals. A shared intake can expose competing demands before commitments are made. A named handover owner can prevent incomplete work moving downstream.
Check whether the change removes effort or shifts it to another team. Controls, demand and staffing remain part of the picture.
Start where the friction is concrete
The first step need not be an organisation-wide redesign. One persistent coordination problem can provide a useful starting point: understand the constraint, examine the options and agree a change that can be tested. Structure should make ordinary delivery dependable.