Why Mid-Market Companies Outgrow Their Operations

As companies grow, the systems and processes that got them to $20M in revenue often start to hold them back at $75M. 

Scaling isn’t just about increasing sales, it’s about operations that can keep up without creating inefficiency, bottlenecks, or rising costs. 

Many mid-market companies hit a ceiling not because their products or services aren’t strong, but because their internal operations can’t support the next stage of growth.

Processes That Worked Before Don’t Scale

At $20M, a company can often rely on manual processes, spreadsheets, or a patchwork of systems.

A handful of people can manage accounts receivable, procurement, and reporting without a problem. But as the business grows, these same processes become slow, error-prone, and opaque. 

For example, a small finance team might manage vendor payments easily at $20M, but at $75M, late invoices and duplicate payments can quietly erode margins.

Hidden Inefficiencies and Rising Costs

Mid-market companies often experience “cost creep” as processes stretch beyond their design. Simple approvals that once took a day now take a week.

Teams spend hours reconciling data manually instead of focusing on value-generating work. 

These inefficiencies not only increase costs but also reduce agility, making it harder to respond to new opportunities or market shifts.

Real-World Example: The Scaling Bottleneck

We recently saw a wholesaler where a single receiving exception took nearly two months to resolve. Not because it was complex, but because it was handled entirely over email.

Fourteen different people were pulled into the thread. Messages went back and forth with no clear ownership. Some people couldn’t see inventory data.

Others didn’t have access to the right systems. Clients were complaining that digital tools weren’t working, while the person who should have had a full view of the operation couldn’t see enough to fix the problem.

What started as a small exception became a drawn-out operational failure, simply because the process wasn’t designed to scale.

Preparing for the Next Stage

Scaling takes more than adding people. It means fixing the operational gaps that start to show as the business grows. If those gaps aren’t addressed, growth slows and costs creep in.

If this sounds familiar, book a free 30-minute strategy call with Hui Newnham:https://calendly.com/bigideasfoundry/hui-30min

Or connect with him on LinkedIn to start the conversation:https://www.linkedin.com/in/hui-newnham/