This article is the extended version of my LinkedIn post.
Human Error: The Persistent Risk in Complex IT Environments
Despite sophisticated tools, automation, and managed services, human error remains one of the leading causes of IT service disruptions. Outages caused by missteps in configuration, overlooked procedures, or incorrect responses under pressure still account for a significant percentage of downtime.
This issue becomes more complex in enterprises where infrastructure operations are outsourced to managed service vendors. While vendors are bound by SLAs and governance frameworks, lapses occur—often due to weak process compliance, poor documentation, or insufficient situational awareness.
The traditional response has been to identify “who” made the mistake. But if every incident ends with finger-pointing, we miss the real lesson: errors are symptoms of systemic gaps, not just individual failures.
From Blame to Proactive Governance
To move forward, organizations need to shift their posture from reactive blame to proactive governance. This requires joint responsibility between internal (organic) teams and vendors. Both parties must strengthen process integrity and execution rigor.
Here are five key practices to embed prevention into daily operations:
1. Strengthen Operational Procedures
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) shouldn’t be static documents. They must include contextual walkthroughs, live demonstrations, and scenario-based examples. SOPs should be reviewed quarterly, kept under version control, and integrated into onboarding for every new engineer—vendor or internal.
2. Establish Dual-Layered Controls
Supervision alone is insufficient. Internal teams should embed themselves into daily operations with observability tools, real-time monitoring, and automated alerts. Dual validation—human plus system checks—reduces the chance of a single point of failure.
3. Invest in Continuous Capability Development
Training should not be limited to certifications. Vendors must perform mandatory scenario drills and post-incident simulations. Internal teams must stay ahead, not only auditing but also coaching and enabling vendor excellence.
4. Apply RCA for Systemic Learning
Every human-error incident must be dissected beyond the immediate cause. Was it poorly designed SOPs? Lack of enforcement? Weak oversight? The goal of Root Cause Analysis is not just documentation, but integration of lessons into preventive controls.
5. Promote a Culture of Shared Ownership
Resilience emerges when vendors and internal teams take joint accountability. Blaming vendors may feel convenient, but it doesn’t prevent recurrence. Instead, internal teams should lead governance and risk management, while vendors demonstrate operational maturity and transparency.
A Lesson from the Field
In one enterprise I observed, a misconfigured backup policy by a vendor engineer led to failed restores during a major incident. The initial instinct was to impose penalties and demand personnel changes. But a deeper review showed that the SOP had not been updated for two years, and internal teams had only audited documentation—not execution.
The outcome was a shift in governance: joint drills, co-owned SOP reviews, and stronger observability. Within six months, recovery metrics improved by 25%, and the partnership with the vendor became more transparent.
The incident reinforced an important truth: human error is inevitable, but its impact is preventable.
Closing Reflection
At the end of the day, IT infrastructure operations succeed not by eliminating human mistakes, but by designing systems, processes, and governance that minimize their consequences.
Vendors must deliver discipline and accountability, but internal teams must orchestrate governance, collaboration, and continuous improvement. Only when both sides embrace shared responsibility can resilience become more than a slogan—it becomes part of the culture.
📑 References: Reason, J. (2000) – Human error: models and management; McKinsey & Company (2020) – Maximizing Value from Vendor Management in IT Operations; IEEE (2023) – Operational Resilience Through Human-Centered Design in IT Infrastructure.
