Observed patterns

Repeated approvals, duplicate reports, broken handoffs, hidden correction work, and overload are observable conditions.

The library defines each condition, the records needed to verify it, and the difference between a recurring symptom and a recognized structural position.

By Evan Micheal FosterPublished Updated
Structural failureApproval bottlenecksHidden labor
What this page answers

Approval bottlenecks, slow decisions, hidden labor, broken handoffs, duplicated work, stalled strategy, and reporting growth as observable patterns of structural imbalance.

Observable conditions.

Approval bottlenecks

A decision must climb to people who can reject it but cannot repair or implement it.

Slow decision rights

The answer is known near the work while legitimate authority sits farther away.

Broken handoffs

Context disappears between functions and gets rebuilt through repeated correction.

Unclear roles

Ownership, approval, execution, and cleanup overlap until work is duplicated or abandoned.

Stalled strategy

The plan preserves priorities but does not alter authority, capacity, funding, measures, or review routines.

Structural overload

The same people carry formal responsibility, informal repair, reporting, and institutional memory until the lane fails.

A recurring symptom does not qualify as a structural position without evidence.

IVA recognition requires documentation, persistence, materiality, cross-functional impact, and verifiability. Use the library to identify which records, roles, dates, and cross-functional effects must be examined.