Build the systems map
By the end of this step you'll have a one-page map of every system Ridgeline runs, with owners, connections, problems and your next action for each.
1. Open the template
Open systems-map-template.csv in your spreadsheet app (as in step 2). It's just a header row. Each column is a question you answer for every system:
| Column | What goes in it | Example |
|---|---|---|
function | The part of the business it serves | Support |
system | Its name | Helpdesk |
purpose | What it's for, in a few words | Support tickets and routing rules |
owner | Who's responsible for it, or "owner unknown" | Support lead |
connects_with | Which other systems it sends to or gets from | Store, Slack, warehouse |
current_issue | Anything that looks wrong or risky | Key wholesale accounts wait in the general queue |
ownership_level | How much is yours to change (see below) | investigate |
next_action | Your next small step | Ask the support lead how tickets are routed |
approval_needed | Who must say yes before you change it | Support lead |
priority | High, medium or low | High |
status | Where you are with it | Not started |
last_updated | Today's date | 2026-10-01 |
2. Your ownership level
For every system, be honest about how much of it is yours:
- investigate: you're still learning how it works. You look; you change nothing.
- propose: you understand it enough to suggest a change, for its owner to approve.
- own: it's yours to change, and you're the one called when it breaks.
On day one, your level for nearly everything is investigate. That's correct. You don't own anything yet, and pretending you do is how people break things they don't understand.
3. Fill it in
- Add one row per system from your AI's list (step 3). Fill the columns from what the welcome pack says.
- Add one row for each undocumented table you found in step 4. Owner: "owner unknown". Current issue: "undocumented". If one has stopped updating, say so.
- Where you don't know something, write unknown. A gap you've marked is useful; a gap you've filled with a guess is dangerous.
Your turn
Fill in the row for the Basecamp booking site. What's its current issue?
Next: Draw the flow, pick what breaks