Hypnotized by Complexity:
How Excess Systems and Processes Cloud Judgment
By: Olivia Arechiga, Co-Founder Line Axia Consulting
AI disclaimer: As always, a human being wrote this article (me!) I used AI tools however to fact-check and proofread.
“We struggle with the complexities and avoid the simplicities” – Norman Vincent Peale
In the never-ending pursuit of growth, compliance, and innovation, organizations naturally accumulate “layers” of systems, and frameworks – in the name of efficiency, compliance, or even “the next best thing”.
Over time, these layers create a dense operating environment in which complexity is normalized – and even virtuous.
This phenomenon, which we refer to as being “hypnotized by complexity,” is not just an operational challenge; it is a strategic liability.
This post explores the roots of organizational complexity, how it impairs decision-making, and why leaders must remain vigilant in disentangling the useful, from the unnecessary and distracting.
Understanding the Nature of Complexity
Complexity in business is by no means negative. In highly regulated sectors such as healthcare, financial services, or digital infrastructure, a certain degree of sophistication is simply non-negotiable.
However, the distinction between essential complexity and accidental or outdated complexity is often blurred (…or ignored).
Essential complexity refers to the inherent intricacy of the issues one is seeking to address.
Accidental complexity arises not from the inherent demands of a system, but from historical decisions, poor integration, siloed teams, or an over-reliance on one-size-fits-all tools.
This complexity then goes unchallenged because it is embedded in bad institutional habits or justified by legacy compliance concerns. It becomes justified by how the work is managed. And because it becomes familiar, it often goes unchallenged.
For lack of a better phrase, it’s a rock you don’t have time (and don’t want) to look under.
The Psychological Dimension: Decision Fatigue and Overload
Leaders navigating complex environments are bombarded by an overwhelming number of variables, including metrics, vendor options, approval gates, governance frameworks, and ever-changing compliance requirements. This creates decision fatigue, where the quality of judgment actually deteriorates over time due to cognitive overload.
A study published in Harvard Business Review outlines how even experienced decision-makers begin to rely more on heuristics and defaults under pressure, potentially undermining the quality of their choices (Harvard Business Review – “Beware of the Busy Manager”).
Complexity of this kind, often fosters a sort of procedural inertia– where decision-makers defer action, or over-consult stakeholders- not because it adds value, but because the system implicitly demands it.
Over time, the result is a system that can (seemingly) only survive in its current complex, over-architectured state. You were, in effect, hypnotized into thinking this is required.
Common Drivers of Accidental Complexity
- Legacy Infrastructure and Policy
Outdated tools, processes, or compliance interpretations are rarely (or not totally) decommissioned. Instead, new layers are added on top of the old, creating internal friction, excessive budgets, and a lack of clear understanding of what is needed. - Functional Silos
Highly specialized departments often build their own systems, taxonomies, and workflows, which complicates cross-functional integration. - Over-responsiveness to Risk
In regulated or litigation-sensitive industries, it’s common for compliance functions to actually over-correct, resulting in burdensome procedures that can outpace actual legal or regulatory requirements. - Tool Sprawl
The proliferation of platforms, especially in IT and healthtech, often leads to overlapping capabilities and poor system visibility, rather than better outcomes.
Organizational Consequences
The net effect of unmanaged accidental complexity is not simply inefficiency- it is strategic drift.
Decision-making slows. Coordination erodes. Stakeholders lose a shared understanding of priorities. This environment then rewards “fire-fighting” rather than long-term thinking. And that reward system makes it difficult to understand and see that you actually are in a fire-fighting system, not a strategic and sustainable future-proofed path.
Moving Toward Deliberate Simplicity
Reducing complexity is not about oversimplification or ignoring legitimate risk.
It is about applying design thinking, analytical rigor, and cross-functional cooperation to distinguish between what is essential and what is merely habitual.
A few guiding questions for teams:
- What decisions consistently take longer than they should, and why?
- Are there systems or processes no one fully understands, yet still rely on?
- Do our compliance mechanisms reflect today’s requirements, or yesterday’s fears?
- Where are there repeated failures of coordination or accountability?
- When was the last time there was a full audit of all IT tools and services?
Clarity, in this context, is not a communications goal, it is an organizational discipline.
Final Thoughts
Every organization carries complexity. The challenge is to recognize when that complexity has ceased to serve the mission, and instead obscures it.
In a marketplace where every product promises to solve your current pain point, it is easy to stay “hypnotized” by complexity. Getting out of this cycle and perspective is both difficult and seemingly counterintuitive at times. “Consciously decoupling” essential complexity from incidental complexity, needs an expert outsider viewpoint and voice.
This is Line Axia’s mission and role: to break the trance or procedural inertia associated with overburdened systems and help businesses reclaim clarity – ensuring they invest in what truly adds value, and shedding what does not.