unmanageable

Unmanageable is an adjective describing something that resists being controlled, governed, or dealt with through ordinary means. It denotes that a task, system, object, or situation cannot be effectively managed within existing resources, constraints, or procedures.

Common applications include business and project management, where unmanageable scope, risk, or workload overwhelms governance; finance, as in unmanageable debt; technology and engineering, where unmanageable complexity or unmanageable data hinders analysis or operation; and behavioral contexts, where an unmanageable situation involves persons or groups that cannot be steered toward agreed outcomes.

Etymology and related terms: The word is formed by adding the prefix un- to manageable. Related concepts include uncontrollable, intractable, unruly, unworkable, and ungovernable; each carries subtle distinctions about the source and degree of difficulty. Addressing unmanageability often involves reducing complexity, redefining constraints, increasing automation or supervision, or changing goals and expectations.