Build clarity and operational efficiency by systemising your processes and freeing up your time for growth.
Most teams grind for growth, but the best ones systemise it. In this step, you’ll see why a structured approach always beats random tactics. You’ll follow Random Rick, Specialist Steve, and Solid Sarah to understand how a system-driven growth approach can double revenue without doubling workload.
Introduction
Work the System by Sam Carpenter is a practical guide to transforming your business by adopting a systems-driven mindset. Carpenter argues that most problems arise from flawed processes rather than people and that sustainable success comes from documenting, improving, and consistently following those processes. By stepping back to view your business as a collection of systems, you can simplify operations, reduce chaos, and achieve predictable results. This book is a blueprint for business owners who want to regain control and build a scalable, stress-free organisation.
The Systems Mindset
Carpenter introduces the concept of the "systems mindset," which involves seeing your business and life as interconnected processes that can be refined and optimised. He emphasises the importance of stepping back from the day-to-day chaos to identify the root causes of inefficiencies. By focusing on the systems rather than individual problems, you can fix recurring issues once and for all. This mindset enables you to transition from being a firefighter to a strategist.
The Three Key Elements
Carpenter outlines three foundational principles for adopting the systems mindset:
Systemising Your Business
The core of the book lies in its practical steps for systemising your business:
The Benefits of Systemisation
By systemising your business, you unlock several benefits:
Key Takeaways
Work the System is a must-read for entrepreneurs and business owners seeking a clear, actionable path to building a streamlined and scalable organisation. Carpenter’s approach simplifies complex operations, reduces stress, and empowers you to achieve sustainable success.
If your marketing and sales teams are too busy firefighting — fixing tools, chasing data, and dealing with messy handovers — you’ll never have time to focus on real growth. The Growth Operations Programme fixes your operations first, so you can finally work on scaling up.
Solid Growth helps B2B service companies scale — not with random tactics, but with clear systems that align marketing and sales into one predictable growth engine. Built on 13 years of hands-on experience — helping teams move from firefighting to predictable, repeatable revenue growth.
15 years experience
1,500 marketers trained since 2015
Exited 6 companies
My name is Ewoud Uphof, a marketing strategist with 15 years of experience. I've been fascinated by growth since 2010, and I created this guide out of a passion for sharing what I've learned. These guides are a way for me to give back to the marketing community and are also linked to my video course, which covers these topics in even greater depth.
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Customer.io is a flexible automation platform designed for precise segmentation and real-time messaging, ideal for B2B service businesses.
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Find and fix what’s slowing your team down. This free scan assesses your marketing, sales, and automation setup, giving you clear recommendations to improve efficiency and eliminate bottlenecks.
Free up a full day every week to focus on growth. We'll fix the systems, tools, and workflows holding your team back.
Master Compound Growth at your own pace—perfect for individual marketers and consultants who want a structured, repeatable way to grow.
Find and fix what’s slowing your team down. This free scan assesses your marketing, sales, and automation setup, giving you clear recommendations to improve efficiency and eliminate bottlenecks.
A structured, hands-on programme designed for teams that want to fix bottlenecks, systemise execution, and scale growth predictably.
Build clarity and operational efficiency by systemising your processes and freeing up your time for growth.
Find and fix what’s slowing your team down. This free scan assesses your marketing, sales, and automation setup, giving you clear recommendations to improve efficiency and eliminate bottlenecks.
Free up a full day every week to focus on growth. We'll fix the systems, tools, and workflows holding your team back.