23. The Hidden Cost of Over-Control
When organisations feel pressure, control is usually the first response.
More approvals.
More checks.
More documentation.
On the surface, this feels responsible. Control is associated with safety, governance, and risk management. Leaders are praised for being thorough, especially in audited environments where mistakes carry reputational and regulatory consequences.
But over time, I have seen a different pattern emerge.
Excessive control often creates the very risks it is meant to prevent.
How Over-Control Begins
Over-control rarely starts as a strategic choice. It usually starts as a reaction.
A mistake that drew attention.
An audit finding that felt uncomfortable.
A period of sustained pressure where leaders felt stretched.
In those moments, adding control feels like regaining stability. Extra sign-offs create reassurance. Additional reviews create the impression of diligence. Responsibility becomes concentrated at the top “just to be safe.”
The problem is that these measures are rarely revisited. What begins as a temporary safeguard quietly becomes standard practice.
Months later, no one remembers why the control exists. They only know that everything takes longer and accountability feels blurred.
The Difference Between Strong Control and Over-Control
Strong control is intentional. It is designed to manage specific risks and enable confident decision-making.
Over-control is reactive. It emerges from fear, fatigue, or mistrust.
The distinction matters.
Strong controls reduce noise. They clarify ownership. They allow leaders to focus on judgment rather than verification.
Over-control does the opposite. It increases complexity. It duplicates effort. It creates bottlenecks that slow decision-making without meaningfully reducing risk.
In audit, this often shows up as controls that are technically compliant but operationally inefficient. Too many checks for low-risk activities. Excessive reliance on senior sign-off where delegation would be more effective.
The system appears robust. The organisation feels constrained.
The Human Cost Leaders Often Miss
The most overlooked cost of over-control is behavioural.
When people are over-checked, they stop thinking. When every decision requires approval, judgment is replaced with compliance. Teams focus on getting sign-off rather than doing the right thing.
This weakens accountability rather than strengthening it.
People assume that responsibility sits elsewhere. Errors are escalated instead of resolved. Initiative declines because the system discourages ownership.
Over time, leaders become more involved in operational detail because the organisation has learned to rely on them.
This creates a cycle. Leaders feel overburdened, so they add more control. The organisation becomes slower, so leaders feel they need to intervene even more.
Audit rarely calls this out directly. But it is visible in how work flows and how people behave under scrutiny.
Why Over-Control Feels Rational
Over-control feels rational because it provides immediate relief. It reduces uncertainty in the short term. Leaders feel safer knowing they have visibility and sign-off authority.
What is less visible is the long-term effect.
Decisions slow down. Risk conversations become transactional. People stop raising issues early because escalation is already cumbersome.
Ironically, this increases risk.
When systems are heavy, issues are hidden until they are unavoidable. When trust is low, transparency becomes selective. Audit then surfaces larger problems that could have been addressed earlier.
At that point, control is often increased again, reinforcing the cycle.
What Audit Teaches Us About Control
Effective audits are impressed by the relevance.
Auditors look for controls that make sense in context. They pay attention to whether controls are understood, applied consistently, and linked to real risks.
An environment with fewer, well-designed controls often performs better than one with extensive, poorly targeted oversight.
From a leadership perspective, this requires a shift in mindset. Control should be a support for good judgment, not a substitute for it.
The question is not “Do we have enough controls?”
It is “Do our controls allow people to make good decisions consistently?”
A Practical Test for Leaders
If you want to assess whether control has crossed into over-control, consider these questions:
Which approvals exist primarily to provide comfort rather than manage risk?
Where have we added checks without removing others?
How much time do senior leaders spend reviewing low-risk decisions?
These questions are about restoring balance.
In many cases, removing one redundant control does more for risk management than adding two new ones.
Letting Go Without Losing Control
Reducing over-control means redesigning them.
Clear ownership.
Defined thresholds.
Trust supported by transparency.
Leaders who do this well are explicit about where judgment is expected and where escalation is required. They resist the urge to centralise decisions unnecessarily, even when pressure is high.
This creates an environment where people think, not just comply.
Audit outcomes improve as a result, since they are smarter and not lighter.
Closing
Over-control is rarely a sign of strong governance. More often, it is a sign of unresolved pressure.
The most effective leaders understand that control is a tool rather than a reflex. They review it regularly. They remove what no longer serves its purpose. They trust people while holding them accountable.
In doing so, they reduce risk in the way that matters most. By building systems that support judgment rather than replace it.
If this resonates, consider where control in your organisation may have shifted from intentional to habitual. That awareness alone is often the first step toward healthier governance.
That's all for this week.
See you on Tuesday!
– Jonathan
P.S. Over-control rarely starts intentionally. It builds quietly, often in the name of being careful. If this feels familiar, it may be worth pausing to ask whether control is still serving judgment or simply easing anxiety. Reach out to me - I’ll guide you.
Disclaimer: This newsletter is general information only and is not financial advice. Always do your own research and consult a professional about your circumstances.
