Podcast Summary: Bred To Lead | Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs

Host: SIPS Healthcare Solutions

Episode: 039 - The Dance Begins: Curing Operational Blindness in Healthcare

Release Date: February 24, 2026

Episode Overview

In Episode 39, Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs explores the concept of "operational blindness" in healthcare organizations—an unseen, systemic issue that impacts leadership effectiveness and organizational performance. Drawing from his new book, Operational Blindness, Dr. Jacobs uses vivid storytelling, tangible examples, and a step-by-step teaching method to both diagnose operational blindness and inspire transformation. While rooted in healthcare, the lessons are broadly applicable to leaders across industries.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Operational Blindness: What Is It & Why It Matters

• Dr. Jacobs defines operational blindness as the inability of leaders to see the true dysfunction within their organizations due to flawed measurement systems and siloed feedback mechanisms.

• It's not a people problem—it's a systems problem: Replacing people doesn't fix recurring issues when the system itself obscures problems or measures the wrong things.

  “Operational blindness is a systemic condition in which leaders cannot see the dysfunction in their own operations because the measurement systems, reporting structures and feedback mechanisms they rely on do not surface them.”
  — Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs ([17:41])

2. Case Studies: Maria & David

• Two SPD (Sterile Processing Department) directors, "Maria" and "David," both considered competent, were unable to solve recurring issues because their reporting structures and metrics didn't reveal the real problems.

• Their environments exemplified how activity metrics (like number of trays processed) do not equal meaningful outcomes (like surgical readiness or quality).

  “Maria and David weren’t bad leaders... They were experienced professionals doing their best inside a system that kept them blind to their own impact. They couldn’t fix what they couldn’t see. And they couldn’t see what the system didn’t show.”
  — Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs ([12:16])

3. The Danger of Invisible Dysfunction

• Organizations often adapt to dysfunction, normalizing workarounds and inefficiencies.

• Without accurate visibility, leaders make decisions “in the dark.”

• This blindness is self-perpetuating: the longer issues remain hidden, the more “normal” they seem.

  "It’s a slow leak that everyone gets used to until the building floods and there’s mold everywhere."
  — Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs ([37:00])

4. When the System Changes, Results Change

• Transformation happens not by swapping out people but by redesigning systems for visibility and alignment with meaningful outcomes.

• Examples span healthcare, manufacturing, tech, services, retail—wherever systems bury dysfunction, operational blindness exists.

  “When you make the invisible visible, everything changes. When upstream functions can see their downstream impact... they stop being overhead and become strategic.”
  — Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs ([16:49])

5. Practical Diagnosis: How to Spot Operational Blindness

Dr. Jacobs provides five diagnostic questions (from [39:18] onward) to uncover operational blindness in any organization:

1. Can your upstream functions quantify their impact on downstream outcomes?
2. Are you measuring activities or outcomes?
3. Are systemic feedback loops in place and actually functional?
4. When things go wrong, do you blame people or examine systems?
5. How often have you changed leaders without sustained improvement?

“If you cycle through multiple directors... and the outcomes stay the same, you don’t have a people problem, you have a system problem. The people keep changing. The system stays the same, and the results stay the same.”
— Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs ([43:08])

6. Moving from Activity to Outcome Language

• Leaders should shift from reporting just numbers to connecting their work directly to outcomes.

• For instance, instead of “400 trays processed,” use “97% first case readiness and 0% instrument-related delays.”

  “That’s a different conversation. That’s outcome language. That’s visibility.”
  — Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs ([13:28])

7. The “Sterile by Design” Solution

• Dr. Jacobs introduces a systemic framework—Sterile by Design—as an operating system to cure operational blindness by:
  • Creating visibility
  • Linking activity to outcome
  • Building functional feedback loops
  • Changing measurement systems to reflect what actually matters ([44:59])

Notable Quotes & Key Timestamps

• On normalizing dysfunction:
  “New employees join and learn how things work here. They absorb the dysfunction as normal. They stop questioning what veterans stopped questioning years ago.” ([37:39])

• On the need for systemic change:
  “You can replace every person in the department and still have operational blindness if the system remains unchanged.” ([22:15])

• On learning from data:
  “What you measure shapes what you see. What you see shapes what you manage. And if your measurements are disconnected from outcomes that matter, you optimize for things that don’t matter.” ([17:57])

• On hope for transformation:
  “Operational blindness is common. It’s pervasive... But it’s also curable. The elephant can dance, bridge builders. But first you have to see the chains.” ([43:55])

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:01] – Introduction & book launch: “Operational Blindness” as a concept
• [04:28] – Recap of previous episodes; lead-up to this episode’s focus
• [06:15] – Empathizing with audience’s frustrations in broken systems
• [08:00–14:00] – Case studies: Maria & David; “the dance begins” reading
• [16:45] – The universal nature of operational blindness across industries
• [17:26–23:00] – Formal definition and breakdown of operational blindness
• [26:32] – Discussion on systemic change versus blaming people
• [30:23] – Analogy on blindness and limitations in perception (story of Dr. Jacobs’ brother)
• [31:44] – On analytics not telling the full story; data vs. feel
• [37:24] – How organizations perpetuate dysfunction unknowingly
• [39:18] – Five questions to diagnose operational blindness
• [44:57] – The path to curing operational blindness & Sterile by Design framework

Tone & Language

Dr. Jacobs speaks directly and with urgency, using vivid analogies (“like a headache you’ve had for a decade”) and memorable stories. The language is both conversational and instructive, aimed at equipping listeners, not just entertaining them.

Conclusion: Key Takeaways

• Operational blindness is a pervasive, systemic threat—but it is curable when leaders forge visibility, align metrics with outcomes, and foster real feedback.
• Don’t accept dysfunction simply because it is familiar.
• Change the system, not just the people.
• The principles apply far beyond healthcare—any organization can fall prey to (and recover from) operational blindness.
• Get started by asking Dr. Jacobs’ five diagnostic questions—and be ready to challenge both your data and your assumptions.

For more resources:

• Book: Operational Blindness (breadtolead.com/blind)
• Report: Operational Blindness Index (sipshealthcare.com/obi10)
• Demo: Sterile by Design (simshealthcare.com/demo)

Memorable Moment:

“The elephant can dance, bridge builders. But first you have to see the chains.”
— Dr. Jake Tayler Jacobs ([43:55])