BarakaBelle

As a careerpreneur, I’ve gained a newfound respect for entrepreneurship. Many of us have worked in organizations plagued by inefficiencies, clunky in-house applications, disconnected systems, missing data, and cycles of failed system rollouts. If you’ve worked in a corporate setting, you’ve likely seen decision-making influenced by individuals who attend a few seminars, keep up with trendy acronyms, and somehow push their half-baked ideas into reality. These decisions are often made in lengthy meetings fueled by a manufactured sense of urgency, leading to yet another system overhaul that promises innovation but delivers disappointment.

For employees, the rollout of these platforms often feels like receiving a mail-order product that barely resembles its advertised appeal. Inevitably, things start breaking. This cycle is a harsh reality for many large organizations. However, as a careerpreneur, you don’t have the luxury of costly inefficiencies. There’s no team, no legacy systems, no cash flow buffer—just you, juggling every role. That’s why adopting a mindset of continuous, structured, and incremental improvement from the start is crucial.

By embracing systems thinking and integrating artificial intelligence (AI) tools, careerpreneurs like myself can create self-organizing business models that run on autopilot. This approach streamlines operations, enhances decision-making, and fosters sustainable growth.

Understanding Systems Thinking in Business

Every business—large or small—is a system composed of interconnected components. A system consists of nodes, connections, and boundaries. Your business nodes include yourself (the owner) and everything that defines your business—your ideas, objectives, mission, vision, products and services, supply chain, customers, tangible and intangible assets, and more.

Business linkages are the elements that connect these nodes. They include the flow of information, signals, and interactions between business entities. For instance, when people comment on your LinkedIn posts, they connect to the information shared but also provide feedback on how they feel about the post and who they are (information-connections).

Finally, your business boundaries define the environment in which you operate. These can be rigid—such as specific demographics or physical products—or flexible, like customer loyalty, where new customers come and go as your business evolves.

At its core, every entrepreneur faces the same fundamental challenges: attracting customers, closing sales, managing finances, staying competitive, and evolving with market demands. A systems thinking approach enables careerpreneurs to see the whole business picture rather than isolated parts.

Systems thinking is a holistic approach to problem-solving that views businesses as dynamic, interdependent entities rather than disconnected components. A decision in one area—such as investing in AI chatbots—will inevitably impact other parts, including customer interactions, web design, email management, and online sales.

Three Key Principles of Systems Thinking

1. Interconnectivity – Every business function—marketing, sales, finance, and customer service—is interconnected. For example, a frustrated customer leaving a negative review doesn’t just impact customer service; it also affects brand reputation and future sales.
2. Feedback Loops – Continuous feedback refines processes and optimizes performance. Understanding whether your feedback loops are reinforcing (creating more problems) or balancing (solving root causes) allows for more effective interventions. Embracing creativity and incentive-driven decision-making helps careerpreneurs navigate the ripple effects of their choices.
3. Adaptation – A system must evolve to respond to external changes and challenges. Think of customer inquiry channels that must work in collaboration to enhance client experience. Entrepreneurs must recognize that today’s solutions will inevitably become tomorrow’s challenges.

For solopreneurs, adopting a systems thinking mindset means designing workflows that are efficient, adaptive, and scalable. Mapping out the interconnected elements of a common business process—such as responding to a LinkedIn lead—helps create structured, repeatable processes that evolve over time.

Building a Self-Organizing Business Model: Mapping Business Processes

Creating a self-organizing business starts with process mapping—identifying inefficiencies, automating repetitive tasks, and structuring workflows for scalability. Here’s how to get started:

Step 1: Identify Core Business Functions

Break your business down into its essential components:

• Lead Generation & Marketing – How do you attract potential clients?
• Sales & Customer Acquisition – What steps are involved in closing a sale?
• Client Onboarding & Service Delivery – How do you ensure a seamless onboarding experience?
• Financial Management – How are payments, invoices, and taxes handled?
• Customer Experience & Retention – What strategies maintain long-term client relationships?

Step 2: Document Each Process in Detail

Once core functions are identified, break down each step:

• Use workflow diagrams (Draw.io, Google Drawings) to visualize processes.
• Create standard operating procedures (SOPs) using tools like Google Docs, Notion, or Trello.
• Identify decision points and bottlenecks to optimize operations.

For example, a simple Data Analytics Consultant’s sales workflow might include:

1. A potential client discovers a blog post or LinkedIn article.
2. The client clicks on a link and lands on the business website.
3. The client fills out a contact form requesting a consultation.
4. An automated email is sent with available appointment slots.
5. The client’s details are automatically added to a CRM or an alternative like Google Sheets or Microsoft Lists.
6. A follow-up email is triggered with a pre-meeting questionnaire.
7. A sales call is conducted, and if successful, an invoice is generated automatically.
8. The client receives a welcome email with onboarding instructions.
9. The analytics project begins with automated data workflows set up in Power BI.

Step 3: Identify Bottlenecks and Redundant Tasks

Mapping business processes reveals inefficiencies, such as:

• Manual Data Entry – Can client details be automatically logged?
• Delayed Response Times – Can email templates or chatbots improve response rates?
• Unstructured Task Management – Can project management tools streamline workflows?

Step 4: Automate Where Possible

Identify opportunities to automate tasks and leverage free or built-in tools:

• Zapier, Power Automate – Automate task handoffs between applications.
• Google Calendar, Microsoft Bookings – Automate appointment scheduling.
• Google Sheets with Google Apps Script – Simulate simple CRM functions.
• Chatbots (Google Business Messages, Copilot Chat) – Provide automated customer support.

Step 5: Monitor, Optimize, and Iterate

Business processes should be continuously refined using analytics tools like:

• Google Analytics – Track website and conversion performance.
• Microsoft Clarity – Understand user behavior.
• Google Looker Studio, Power BI – Generate visual business reports.

Embracing a systems-thinking mindset is essential in the world we live in, whether you’re a careerpreneur, careerpreneur, or entrepreneur. Traditional business thinking often focuses on linear cause-and-effect logic—one problem, one solution, or even worse, many problems with many solutions. In fact, solutions are not isolated; they are interconnected within a broader system, often creating new challenges down the line.

A business is a living, evolving system that requires resilience, adaptability, and the ability to self-organize. Every decision that is made, from automating client interactions to tweaking your marketing strategy—creates ripple effects, with unintended consequences, across the entire operation. When we view our business as a dynamic ecosystem rather than a collection of separate tasks, we can proactively design processes that reduce inefficiencies, increase automation, and foster sustainable growth.

Self-organization is not about achieving perfectionism – it is about creating a flexible, learning-oriented system that can adjust to unexpected challenges. Think about major disruptions: what happens if your main revenue stream dries up? If an algorithm change drastically reduces your online visibility? If external events—like economic downturns or policy changes—force you to pivot? A self-organizing business doesn’t just survive these shocks; it adapts, restructures, and continues to function because its processes are designed to evolve.

The key takeaway is this: The businesses that thrive are those that embrace change as a constant. Change is exhausting but can be rewarding as well. In some cases, change is scary and uncomfortable as we want stability, certainty, and many of us are risk averse. Careerpreneur-ship can be daunting and often is isolating, muddy with periods of punctuation, and long periods of troughs rather than peaks. However, I have come to the realization that by mapping out workflows, identifying inefficiencies, and leveraging automation, we can empower ourselves to work on our business rather than just in it.

So, if you’re like myself—a careerpreneur juggling multiple roles—start small. Identify one process to optimize, automate a repetitive task, or create a simple workflow that saves time. Each improvement builds upon the last, compounding into a business model that is not only efficient but self-sustaining.

For a careerpreneur, the future of work is not about doing more; it’s about designing better systems. Those who master the art of self-organization will have an undeniable advantage—whether they’re running a solo business today or leading a thriving enterprise tomorrow.

Source:

• Practical Applications of Systems Thinking to Business by by Jamie Monat, Matthew Amissah and Thomas Gannon: Link
• The Work System Method: Systems Thinking for Business Professionals by Steven Alter: Link