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<h2>The “Who” and the “How” Are the Same Problem &nbsp;</h2>Sam Walton’s Blind Spot In Made in America, Sam Walton tells a story about the early Walmart days. He was obsessed with stores — visiting them constantly, taking notes, measuring prices, comparing displays.He’d drive thousands of miles a year, popping in unannounced to check shelves, signage, and how fast cashiers moved. He was relentless about how the business ran.One day, after stopping by a struggling store, a young manager pulled him aside and said, “Mr. Walton, I can’t keep up. Every time we think we’re doing it right, the system changes again.”Sam realized something: he’d built incredible systems, but he hadn’t built enough leaders who could carry those systems forward. The how was solid — the who wasn’t ready for it.&nbsp; <figure id="figure-oegynxs28hmhilulj4"><img id="oegynxs28hmhilulj4" src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2193758898/photo/uncertainty-and-challenges-concept.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=4SvzhczN6-e9HyDYtBO1_YbpVH-oZU7Md7z1tCJ0ZpU=" alt="Fort Worth Small Business consultant systems fix to scale" title="Fort Worth Small Business consultant systems fix to scale" class="object-cover bg-gray-100 rounded-2xl md:rounded-3xl lg:rounded-4xl" style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: undefined undefined;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="undefined" data-positiony="undefined" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2193758898/photo/uncertainty-and-challenges-concept.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=4SvzhczN6-e9HyDYtBO1_YbpVH-oZU7Md7z1tCJ0ZpU=" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: undefined undefined;"></figure><h2>Execution Has Two Sides</h2>Most business owners treat the who and the how like separate problems. They’re not. They’re the same problem seen from two angles.You can have the best systems in the world, but if the wrong people are running them, they’ll collapse under confusion or apathy. And you can have great people, but if your systems are a mess, they’ll burn out fixing the same problems over and over.The who determines the strength of your culture. The how determines the strength of your execution. You can’t build a winning operation without both.<h2>Mismatched Systems Kill Momentum</h2>When the who and the how are out of sync, your business feels harder than it should.You start to see the symptoms:Great employees leaving because they’re buried in broken processes. Systems that worked six months ago suddenly collapsing under new staff. You — the owner — getting dragged back into day-to-day chaos because nothing sticks. It’s not that your people aren’t capable or your systems aren’t smart enough. It’s that they were never built for each other.When people and process align, execution feels natural. When they don’t, it feels like a constant uphill push. <figure id="figure-4bn2bcnmydmhilzj98"><img id="4bn2bcnmydmhilzj98" src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/1345137324/photo/flow-chart-software-diagram-illustration-with-various-colorful-shapes.jpg?b=1&s=2048x2048&w=0&k=20&c=sO8hdC5Cm0LzpIehbog1cOKnYddEZ4ZHXjHLp44qjkU=" alt="North Texas Flow chart for breaking bottle necks in small businesses" title="North Texas Flow chart for breaking bottle necks in small businesses" class="object-cover bg-gray-100 rounded-2xl md:rounded-3xl lg:rounded-4xl" style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: undefined undefined;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionX="undefined" data-positionY="undefined" data-fullWidth="false"/></figure><h2>Before a making a fix, check to see the fit first.</h2>Next time something keeps breaking — instead of asking, “What’s wrong with this person?” or “What’s wrong with this system?” — ask: “Do the person and the process actually fit each other?”Here’s how:Pick one recurring breakdown — a slow quote process, a sloppy handoff, or a missed follow-up. Write down who owns it and how they’re doing it. Ask whether the process matches their strengths. If your top performer keeps bending the system to make it work, you probably need a better system. If your system works for everyone except one person, you probably need a better fit.Great leaders don’t just build systems. They design fit.<figure id="figure-voiqe3xtxcmhim0cqq"><img id="voiqe3xtxcmhim0cqq" src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2204857855/photo/hand-holding-paper-with-gear-icon-and-mechanic-tools-concept-of-maintenance-process-of.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=uSvPvylC6Sy0MEcHcCwwE-FyEf7f09ysYN_tmKh2ag0=" alt="Hand holding paper with gear icon and mechanic tools. Concept of maintenance, process of maintaining and repairing equipment." title="Hand holding paper with gear icon and mechanic tools. Concept of maintenance, process of maintaining and repairing equipment." class="object-cover bg-gray-100 rounded-2xl md:rounded-3xl lg:rounded-4xl" style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="undefined" data-positiony="undefined" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2204857855/photo/hand-holding-paper-with-gear-icon-and-mechanic-tools-concept-of-maintenance-process-of.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=uSvPvylC6Sy0MEcHcCwwE-FyEf7f09ysYN_tmKh2ag0=" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;"></figure><h2>Sam Walton's Fix</h2>When Sam Walton realized his “how” had outgrown his “who,” he didn’t double down on control. He doubled down on leadership.He started spending as much time developing store managers as he did developing systems. He held Saturday morning meetings, brought managers together to swap ideas, and built an environment where good people could run great systems — not just follow orders.That’s what made Walmart unstoppable. Not the technology. Not the pricing. The alignment between the people and the process.Your business is no different. If execution feels heavy, you don’t need more effort — you need more fit.Because the who and the how aren’t separate. They’re two sides of the same decision: How will we win — and who can carry that forward?&nbsp; When your people and your process work together, growth doesn’t feel forced — it feels inevitable

"Who" Vs "How" - Stop Asking the Wrong Question

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<h2>Understanding the Challenge</h2>The Issue Isn’t the Issue. Control Is. &nbsp; In Shoe Dog, Phil Knight — the founder of Nike — tells the story of his earliest days trying to scale Blue Ribbon Sports. He was juggling suppliers, cash flow, and a small team of loyal but overwhelmed employees. Every week, another crisis: late shipments, customer complaints, missed deadlines.He blamed suppliers, banks, even the market. But one night, while reviewing letters from Japan about missed payments and slow orders, it hit him: the chaos wasn’t out there. It was inside his own business. He didn’t have control — not over his cash, his systems, or his people.(We’ll come back to how he solved it.)<figure id="figure-h1cl8hv6wsmhcu0syt"><img id="h1cl8hv6wsmhcu0syt" src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2233862390/photo/electronic-display-bar-graph-digital-measuring-device.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=rai9bd0OB3CHPs4EVCfVhjOr7OI-A8bGmZq1NOAPYNQ=" alt="measuring business systems, optimizing growth and profit with consulting in Ft Worth" title="measuring business systems, optimizing growth and profit with consulting in Ft Worth" class="object-cover bg-gray-100 rounded-2xl md:rounded-3xl lg:rounded-4xl" style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="null" data-positiony="null" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2233862390/photo/electronic-display-bar-graph-digital-measuring-device.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=rai9bd0OB3CHPs4EVCfVhjOr7OI-A8bGmZq1NOAPYNQ=" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;"></figure><h3>Let's break it down.</h3>The issue you’re frustrated about — slow sales, inconsistent team performance, dropped balls — usually isn’t the real issue. It’s a symptom of lost control.Control doesn’t mean micromanaging or hovering. It means visibility: knowing what’s happening, when, and why — without having to chase it down.When leaders lose control, they often do one of two things:Overreact — creating more rules, more meetings, and more tension. Withdraw — assuming they hired the wrong people or that “this is just how small business works.” Both responses miss the truth: you can’t fix what you can’t see.<h3>The Build Up.</h3>Because control is the foundation of calm, consistent leadership.Without control, every problem feels like a fire. With control, every problem becomes a process.The illusion most founders live under is that “once I hire the right people, I can step back.” But control doesn’t come from people — it comes from systems. Systems create feedback. Feedback creates foresight. Foresight creates calm.If you don’t build that structure, you’ll always feel like you’re one bad week away from the business running off the rails.<figure id="figure-xf0qu0xcrlmhcu0x53"><img id="xf0qu0xcrlmhcu0x53" src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2167890761/photo/tug-of-war-competition-two-men-pulling-on-rope.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=nr-YPLbadrozU__fQqAo3GCp9W6kjGOPM5vGctX9ejM=" alt="Business Consulting, push and pull of control for Fractional COO's and Leadership" title="Business Consulting, push and pull of control for Fractional COO's and Leadership" class="object-cover bg-gray-100 rounded-2xl md:rounded-3xl lg:rounded-4xl" style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="null" data-positiony="null" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://media.gettyimages.com/id/2167890761/photo/tug-of-war-competition-two-men-pulling-on-rope.jpg?b=1&amp;s=2048x2048&amp;w=0&amp;k=20&amp;c=nr-YPLbadrozU__fQqAo3GCp9W6kjGOPM5vGctX9ejM=" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;"></figure><h3>Let's Go!</h3>Start by reclaiming control through visibility — not volume.Pick one area of your business that feels chaotic: scheduling, finances, client delivery, or operations. Then ask:What data point would tell me, in one glance, if this is healthy or not? Who owns it? How often am I seeing it? Create a simple rhythm — a dashboard, a daily number, a weekly check-in — that puts the truth in front of you before it becomes a problem.Control isn’t built in a day. It’s built in habits that prevent surprises.<h3>Time to bring it all in.</h3>When Phil Knight realized his problem wasn’t suppliers or banks — it was his lack of control — he built systems that changed everything. He brought in disciplined accountants. He demanded weekly updates. He set metrics and rhythms that gave him visibility across the business.And that shift — from chaos to control — became the foundation of Nike’s growth. He wrote later that once the business had “real visibility,” he could finally stop running in reaction and start running on intention.That’s the moment every founder has to reach. When you stop blaming the issue — and take back control of the system that created it.That is the moment the fog lifts, and the next summit comes into sight.Because the issue isn’t the issue, Control is the Issue. Luckily you are already half way there to getting a handle on The Issue!

The Issue is not The Issue, Control is the Issue!

Advance Twenty Eight

Fractional COO and Business Consulting. Helping owners harness the chaos, hone systems.

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