11/08/2026
Before you write the job ad, write down what the person would actually do all day. Much of it is usually a rule, not a job.
A rule is anything you can describe in steps without saying “it depends”. Retyping the same customer into a third tool. Deciding who answers an email. Exporting the same four spreadsheets every Friday. None of that needs judgement, and none of it gets better with a person doing it.
The five in the slides are the ones we see most often in companies of five to fifty people. They are also the ones that quietly grow into a headcount nobody planned.
Pick the one you personally hate. Time it for a week, honestly, including the corrections. That number is the whole business case, and you can take it to any decision without a consultant.
Save this before your next hiring conversation.