The missing model of work
How an operating model relates the partial pictures already held in business systems.
Most organisations already hold several useful but partial pictures of themselves.
- An org chart describes reporting relationships.
- A drive or wiki stores documents.
- A task board tracks current activity.
- An App carries out or records part of the work.
None of those pictures alone is a complete model of recurring work. They do not necessarily state what work should exist, where it belongs, who or what can perform it, what result proves completion, or who may change the accepted design.
A connected operating model
An operating model connects those questions without trying to replace every specialist system. It describes the intended work and then relates documents, methods, Apps, people and evidence to that work.
This distinction matters. A document can explain a method without becoming the definition of the work. An App can support work without owning it. A task can record one occurrence without defining the recurring responsibility behind it.
Once the model is explicit, its terms have a clearer job: structure explains where work belongs; assignment explains who is accountable; methods explain how work may be done; results describe what the work is intended to produce.