Case: Same Argument, Every Monday, Forever

Groundhog Day in the Boardroom

I audit workflows for a living. The most common source of waste I see is not bad software or slow internet. It is Amnesia.

Teams make a decision in June. By August, they have forgotten why they made it. By September, a new hire asks a question, and the entire debate restarts from zero.

The Friction: The Zombie Debate

When we do not write things down, we rely on “Oral History.”

• Oral history is subjective.
• Oral history leaves when the employee quits.
• Oral history is expensive.

Every time you re-litigate a decision, you are stalling. You are not moving forward; you are treading water. This creates a culture of hesitancy. People stop trusting decisions because they know everything is up for negotiation next week.

The Flow: The Decision Record (ADR)

Developers have solved this. They use something called an “Architecture Decision Record” (ADR). I stole it, stripped out the geek-speak, and applied it to Operations.

We do not take “Meeting Minutes.” Minutes are useless transcripts of who said what. We create Decision Logs.

I set up a simple database in Notion (or a shared Excel sheet). It has five columns. No more, no less.

[TO EDITOR: Create a table graphic with columns: ID | Date | Decision | Context | Owner]

The Anatomy of a Decision Note

1. The Decision: One sentence. Absolute.
   • Example: “We are migrating to HubSpot.”
2. The Context: Why did we do this? (This is the most important part).
   • Example: “Salesforce was too expensive for our current tier. HubSpot integrates better with our marketing flow.”
3. The Options Rejected: What did we say no to?
   • Example: “Rejected Pipedrive because it lacks automation features.”
4. The Date: When does this expire?
   • Example: “Review in Q4 2026.”
5. The Owner: Who signed this off?
   • Example: “@MartaClarity”

How to Use It as a Weapon

The next time someone brings up the CRM debate in a meeting, I do not argue. I do not get emotional.

I open the log. I copy the link. I paste it in the chat.

“We decided this on November 15th. The context is in the log. Unless the pricing structure has changed significantly, this is closed.”

The room goes quiet. The meeting moves on. The work continues.

Summary: Clear is kind. Ambiguity allows zombies to roam your company. Write it down, pin it, and stop talking about it.

FAQs

Does every small decision need a log?

No. If you order lunch, just eat. If you change a workflow or spend over $500, log it.

Who owns the log?

The person who called the meeting. If you led the discussion, you own the record.

Nobody looks at the old notes.

They will when you link to them to shut down a repetitive argument. It is a defensive weapon.