Fix Kit #3/6: Running in Circles

We’ve Solved This Before. That’s the Problem.
When every meeting feels like déjà vu with cleaner fonts.

We’re back in the room at InHouse Secure. Callum Nair, our ever-hopeful production planner, has the flipchart. Joe Mensah, warehouse lead and veteran of too many failed rollouts, stands with his arms folded. And me, Tom Sayer — production manager, local sceptic, and unofficial translator of SAP-to-reality — I’m already bracing for the rerun.

Same triangle. Same markers. Same post-its curling at the edges. This one’s branded a “solutioning session,” which is what we now call meetings where nobody wants to say “we’re stuck again.”

And I know it won’t work. Not because the idea’s wrong. Because I’ve seen this loop. Twice. Only real difference? The fonts look nicer this time.

Let Me Translate the Room

Callum, the planner: “We’ve published the schedule. If you followed it, we’d stay on track.” Joe, warehouse: “We can’t keep chasing changes at 6 a.m. If it’s not frozen, don’t expect us to stage it.” Me: “I follow what’s realistic. Not what someone guessed two days ago.”

That lands. Not because I raise my voice. But because it’s true. Everyone knows it. No one says it. And I’m still running the floor. Which means I’m still not following the plan.

No One Asks Why

We just walked the warehouse the week before. Found pallets five metres up. Hiding. Like secrets in shrink wrap.

So we know something’s broken. But instead of asking why we’re hiding things, We try to make it prettier.

That’s when Guy steps in. “Assumption audit,” he says. And we all start writing what we think is true:

Users resist change.
The supermarket is essential.
Production follows the frozen plan.
Finance needs that extra approval step.
The warehouse can’t pre-stage without a lock.

Then he pulls out what he calls “a few quiet patterns.” From transcripts. From walks. From logs we haven’t touched since the last upgrade.

What He Shares

Users resist change? Nope. Mindstorming says they’re actively adjusting. Taking parts off racks because they expect gaps.
Supermarket is essential? Some critical components bypass it. Held back. Manually fed in when things start looking thin.
Production follows the frozen plan? Check the system. Sequencing changes daily. Execution doesn’t match what’s posted.
Warehouse can’t pre-stage without a lock? They do. Quietly. Based on patterns.
Finance needs that approval step? It clears automatically. Every time. No rejections in over a year.

None of this is shocking. But written down? It’s a mirror.

And it stings.

And Still — Nobody Moves

Because this isn’t a config issue. It’s a trust issue. And I’m stuck in the middle.

Misunderstood (Not Misaligned)

I know what they think: That I’m stubborn. That I override for fun. That I refuse to fall in line.

But they don’t see what I see:

When a critical job fails mid-shift.
When a batch goes missing and everyone acts like it didn’t.
When the line stops and no one upstairs notices until escalation number three.

I don’t ignore the plan for sport. I change it because I have to.

The alternative? We miss targets. Burn hours. Fail quietly. And I’m the one who gets the call.

Planner Thinks I’m Undisciplined.

Warehouse Thinks I’m the Problem.

But I’m Just Closer to the Fire.

Doesn’t make me right. Just makes me real. And that’s the bit this project never seems to grasp.

They want me predictable. But first? Understand why I keep moving.

Why the Last Two Rollouts Failed

Attempt One: Roll out the ECC template. Classic WM. Standard config.

Issue? One fixed bin per material. That’s tidy on paper. But our stuff moves. Fast. Frequently. Some components need to be in five places at once in the supermarket. The system couldn’t cope.

Project stalled. We documented it. Shelved it. Moved on.

Attempt Two: Customise. Enhance Classic WM. Multiple bins. Extra logic. Subroutines. But every patch created a new edge case.

The system never got stable. And no one could promise it wouldn’t fall apart at volume.

Eventually, someone asked the only honest question in the room: “Do you really want to go live with this?”

We didn’t. Because we were trying to make SAP pretend we were standard. And we’re not.

The Loop Reboots a Week Later

Warehouse preps the line. I change the job. Stock’s missing. Errors fire. Trust collapses.

And here we are. Same room. Same loop. Different post-its.

What Most Projects Miss

They think agreement is alignment. They treat a working config like a working relationship. They tiptoe around the real problem — then build around it.

But a polished config is no match for an unwritten rule.