Abraham Sanieoff on Decision Bottlenecks: Why Teams Stall — and How to Fix It
Abraham Sanieoff
July 11, 2025
“Most teams don’t move slowly because they’re lazy — they move slowly because no one knows who can say yes.”
Abraham Sanieoff

Introduction


The phrase “decision paralysis” gets thrown around often, but the real issue for most companies isn’t indecision — it’s that their processes don’t support efficient ownership of decisions in the first place.


Abraham Sanieoff argues that the slowdown in most growing companies doesn’t come from lack of ideas or effort — it comes from friction around who owns what, how decisions get made, and what the approval paths actually look like.


When this kind of ambiguity exists, teams slow down. People hesitate. Progress stalls. And the overall velocity of the business suffers.


This article explores how decision bottlenecks form, what they cost, and how to eliminate them by putting the right structure in place — without adding more red tape.


Section 1: What Is a Decision Bottleneck?


A decision bottleneck occurs when an organization lacks clarity on who has the authority to move something forward — and no one wants to make the wrong call.


It shows up as:


  • Endless back-and-forth for routine approvals
  • Multiple stakeholders weighing in, but no one making the final call
  • Over-reliance on executives for minor decisions
  • Projects stalled in limbo waiting on feedback
“If your team needs an executive to weigh in on everything, you don’t have a team — you have a task queue.”
Abraham Sanieoff

Decision bottlenecks aren’t always visible. They live in slack threads, vague meeting notes, and unclear roadmaps. But they create drag on everything — hiring, execution, product releases, and internal collaboration.


Section 2: How Bottlenecks Develop in Growing Teams


Early-stage teams often operate with speed and fluidity — everyone talks to everyone, decisions are made quickly, and collaboration is high. But as the organization grows, that model breaks.


Here’s how bottlenecks start to form:


1. Undefined Decision Roles

No one knows who the actual decision-maker is. Input is gathered, but action stalls.


2. Fear of Mistakes

Team members would rather delay than risk being wrong, especially if there’s no safety net for ownership.


3. Over-Collaboration

Everyone has a voice, but no one has responsibility. Consensus becomes a requirement, and nothing moves.


4. Founder Dependency

Even after building out teams, the founder is still the default approver for most decisions.


These habits might not seem critical day to day — but over weeks and months, they compound into operational drag.


Section 3: The Cost of Slow Decisions


While the financial cost of bottlenecks is hard to measure directly, the opportunity cost is enormous.

Here’s what slow decisions often lead to:


  • Delayed launches that miss momentum
  • Team frustration from repeated revisions
  • Unclear expectations that lead to rework
  • Loss of trust in leadership to provide direction
  • Employee disengagement due to lack of autonomy
“High performers don’t stick around in environments where clarity is optional.”
Abraham Sanieoff

The longer these habits go unchecked, the harder they are to untangle — and the more your team learns to default to hesitation.


Section 4: Why More Meetings Don’t Solve the Problem


When decisions slow down, many companies respond by adding meetings — more standups, more syncs, more calls to “get on the same page.”


But more meetings don’t create better decisions. They just distribute ownership more thinly and increase the surface area for disagreement.


Symptoms of over-meeting include:


  • Team members coming out of meetings unsure of what was decided
  • Endless revisions with no clear endpoint
  • People attending meetings that don’t involve their responsibilities
  • Key stakeholders being looped in after decisions are half-made
“You can’t fix indecision with another calendar invite.”
Abraham Sanieoff

The fix isn’t more discussion — it’s structuring ownership in a way that’s predictable, respected, and supported.


Section 5: The RACI Model (and Why Most Teams Misuse It)


Many teams use RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) as a framework to define decision roles. In theory, it’s a smart system. But in practice, most companies misuse it.


Common issues:


  • Assigning multiple “Accountable” roles to avoid conflict
  • Treating “Consulted” as mandatory approval
  • Failing to document decisions after they’re made


A bloated RACI chart doesn’t prevent bottlenecks — it adds to them.


The point of frameworks like RACI isn’t to create more process — it’s to clarify authority, reduce second-guessing, and make decisions easier to trace.


Section 6: Building a Culture of Decision Ownership


Abraham Sanieoff emphasizes that eliminating bottlenecks isn’t just about tools or charts — it’s about creating a culture where ownership is safe, expected, and supported.


Here’s what that looks like in practice:


1. Define the Decision Types


Not all decisions are equal. Categorize them by:


  • Strategic (executive level)
  • Tactical (team leads)
  • Operational (individual contributors)


When team members know what decisions are theirs to make, they stop waiting and start executing.


2. Make Decision Paths Visible


Don’t leave ownership to assumption. Clearly outline:

  • Who decides
  • Who contributes
  • How decisions are communicated


This can be a simple doc, chart, or SOP — as long as it’s accessible and used.


3. Support Post-Decision Learning

Instead of punishing mistakes, create space to review and improve decision-making over time. This builds confidence across the team.


“People won’t take ownership if they think one mistake will get them sidelined.”
Abraham Sanieoff

When teams see that ownership is supported — even when things don’t go perfectly — they become faster, more confident, and more resilient.


Section 7: How to Audit and Eliminate Bottlenecks


Bottlenecks can be hard to spot from the top down. Abraham Sanieoff recommends a ground-up audit to understand where friction lives.


Start by asking:


  • What decisions are consistently delayed?
  • Where do approvals get stuck?
  • Which team members are over-relied on?
  • Where are decisions reversed after being made?


Once you identify patterns, take these steps:


Step 1: Centralize Decision Logs

Create a lightweight record of what decisions were made, by whom, and when. This reduces repeated debates.


Step 2: Delegate With Boundaries

Give ownership of key decisions — and define the scope clearly. Include criteria like budget limits, timelines, or alignment with objectives.


Step 3: Reduce “Default to CEO” Behavior

If everything routes back to a founder or executive, address the root: is it a trust issue, or a system issue?


Step 4: Build a Decision Rhythm

Decide how often key decisions are reviewed, revised, or escalated. This rhythm helps prevent indecision loops.


Over time, these practices shift your team from reactive to proactive — from waiting for approval to making confident, aligned moves.


Section 8: What Aligned Teams Do Differently


Organizations with clean decision-making processes don’t just move faster — they retain better people and produce more consistent outcomes.


They:

  • Have clear lanes for decision authority
  • Trust team leads to act without asking for permission
  • Document decisions in real-time
  • Escalate issues only when absolutely necessary
  • Review decisions regularly for learning, not blame
“Execution isn’t about working harder — it’s about making fewer things wait for permission.”
Abraham Sanieoff

The best teams don’t avoid mistakes — they avoid stagnation. And they do it by making decisions at the right level, with the right context, and the right ownership.


Conclusion: Speed Comes from Clarity, Not Pressure


Teams don’t move faster just because leaders push harder. They move faster when they know what’s theirs to own, feel safe doing it, and trust the system backing them.


Decision bottlenecks are one of the most fixable — yet costly — issues in growing companies. Fixing them doesn’t require overhauling your culture or hiring more managers. It requires a clear framework, visible ownership, and consistent support.


“The fastest companies aren’t making perfect decisions — they’re just not stuck waiting for them.”
Abraham Sanieoff

If your team is spinning its wheels or stuck waiting for approvals, it’s time to stop treating decision-making as an art form and start treating it like an operational system — one you can build, improve, and scale.


AUTHOR:

Abraham Sanieoff

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