The blue screen of death was the description used for the July 19 collapse of Window’s operating system. A bug in cybersecurity software from CrowdStrike used by major corporations crashed 8.5 million computers.
Microsoft said it was less than one percent of all Windows machines. What percentage of major corporation systems do you think it affected? A lot more than one percent. A dependency for sure.
So what are the business lessons here?
- When there’s a lynchpin in any system and that lynchpin breaks, you’re in trouble. A simple software update created havoc for airlines, hospitals, and others.
- In small business it’s often people who are the dependency. Especially if it’s the owner and it could be a top customer, a key employee, or a dominant supplier.
- It could be machinery. I remember explaining to an owner why his business wouldn’t get the same multiple of earnings as his former employer, a $500 million firm. My analogy was if one of his machines was out for a month or two he’s in trouble (he agreed). If the large company had a machine out it was a minor adjustment to how they operate. He got the message.
We write a lot about dependencies because they can be crippling.
“A goal without a plan is simply a wish.” Antoine de saint-Exupery
“A man who correctly guesses a woman’s age may be smart, but he’s not very bright.” Lucille Ball