Ask HN: Framework for the entire company?

I'll have a stab at answering this (from a purely theoretical perspective rather than suggesting specific solutions). Apologies for the lengthy response - The below is industry-agnostic, but much of the research and experience is from the IT industry (software/saas, MSPs, IT project providers etc.). The scope is SMEs only (200+ pax is a different kettle of fish).

Short answer: not really.

Long answer: The following is an assessment of what such an 'open framework' should/would/does entail - Including turnkey modules for such things as DevOps / Helpdesk / Procurement etc.

While contingency theory (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contingency_theory) states that there is no standard way to organise a business, I believe that there is actually a basic framework that could underpin all capitalist enterprises. This needs to be malleable and allow for variables, but there is a simple holistic structure that all companies essentially fit. This framework would be valuable to:

- Provide an overarching, comprehensive view of the company for peace of mind and understanding

- Dictate the systems and process to achieve end products in all areas of the business

- Identify what functions have not been codified, or are in need of improvement (e.g. a Data / Security module may show that a company does not yet have a Data Controller / GDPR procedure in place).

- Be the single source of information (i.e. no rogue manuals being created by staff, no going 'outside of procedure' if it is codified).

Common vernacular across all industries offering such solutions is "a business process" - But it is rare to see the phrase "ALL business processes" catered for. An organisation's documentation / manual / processes are rarely up to date, and no companies seem to offer a comprehensive business framework. Management Consultancy rarely deals with a business 'holistically' (But this strays into a conversation regarding issues with the Management Consulting industry, which is a topic for another time).

Further, there is no consensus in industry as to a comprehensive business manual (i.e. all business processes collated, all activities catered for). On top of this, there is no consensus as to categorisation - I.e. sorting this common framework into a business processes and organisational structure that everyone understands. There are many 'business operating systems' and 'business frameworks', but their names always oversell the scope of what the product actually does - Most will simply be a small collection of tools for management or the product lifecycle.

There are business problems (for SMEs) that have existed for thousands of years, but have had solutions for nearly as long. Yet, those problems still exist. Has a waiter ever forgotten something for your table? This should be a solved issue (problem: human error, example solution: notepads with categories including 'miscellaneous requests'). But most restaurants reinvent the wheel to some extent.

The above paragraphs lead to this hypothesis: "A business framework could be provided which reduces overhead for SMEs, providing them direction and structure and preventing them from having to reinvent the wheel. The framework would be a living, breathing system, allowing for continuous improvement and preventing issues with existing solutions."

So why does the above not seem to exist? (If anyone knows of any relevant existing solutions here, I would love to know about it). I suspect that it is partly this: Capitalism is still immature/changing, so there is no stable framework yet - even at a macro view. An example manifestation of this is that 'IT' was shoehorned in as a major department over the last 30 years. Researching into Organisational Structure shows that really, we haven't even figured ou...