During our Level 10 Meeting, we frequently solve an issue during IDS and complete the resulting To-Dos, only to have the exact same problem reappear on our Issues List a month later. What structural failure causes these zombie issues to keep coming back?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When an issue keeps returning to your Issues List, your leadership team did not solve the root cause during IDS. You treated a symptom with a tactical task, congratulated yourselves on completing the To-Do, and left the structural flaw untouched.

Zombie issues happen because of three facilitation mistakes:

- Rushing the Identify step. Most leadership teams spend five minutes identifying, fifty minutes discussing, and five minutes solving. Reverse that balance. Spend the majority of your time digging for the real root cause. Ask why five times. If a missed project deadline is blamed on a vendor, keep digging until you realize your internal team provided specifications two weeks late.
- Confusing action with resolution. Assigning a To-Do to update a spreadsheet does not mean you solved an issue. A true solution alters an underlying system: updating a documented process, reassigning a seat on the Accountability Chart, or modifying expectations. Ask the room before closing the issue: Will this solution permanently eliminate the problem, or are we just buying time?
- Failing to identify the correct owner. Often, an issue returns because the task was handed to a polite team member who lacked the authority or skill to fix the process. The To-Do must land on the leader whose seat on the Accountability Chart truly owns the operational function.

When a recurring issue appears on the board, call it out publicly. Do not jump into debate. Ask the team why our previous solution failed before you generate a single new task.