Pitfall of having a single point-person

It was this time of week that Z would normally hibernate. But fate would have its reason and he was denied of that precious luxury time.

There has been a major issue regarding the supposedly release of their software. His boss and other teammates have constantly been absent for the past few days. With the deadline looming over, it only means one thing, major overtime for him.

Why would these people be gone in the time like this, he winced. Don't they have any sense of urgency?

And so he spent sleepless nights and weekends trying to finish his module. With his boss nowhere in sight, Z at first seems helpless and then hopelessness sinks in. If we cannot deliver this project on time then that's it.

I don't want to be fired, he said defensively. This is one of those cases where this is out of my hand.

From the very start there was an anomaly regarding job designation in Z's company. One person, one project, one teamlead was the common mantra. Initially, it was a good plan as it would save scarce resources and manpower. But little did they know that this would be its pitfall.

So, if we do the math, it would be that three projects equals to three point persons. These three heads are the only ones who know the intricacies of their respective system. Its in and out. The lifeblood of the company depends on them and no person outside would generally understand the entirety of the project.

After that whole fiasco, the management decided that the best course of action to take was to assign multiple point persons to new projects. In that way, projects will not be stalled if at one point a teamlead will be run over by a bus tomorrow.

As for Z, he still has his job. Good thing for him the management realized its mistakes and did not point the finger at him.