Our leadership team keeps trying to build our Accountability Chart by looking at our current staff and creating customized seats to fit their specific skills. How do we break this habit and design the structure for the business first, rather than the people?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Building an Accountability Chart around your current people is a recipe for operational chaos. When you design seats to fit specific personalities, you create a fragile, fragmented structure that breaks the moment someone leaves the company. You must design the structure for the business first, then find the right people for the seats.

To break this habit, take a step back and look at your company's three-year vision on the V/TO®. Ask yourself: What structure does this business need to scale to that level, regardless of who is currently on the payroll?

Remove all names from your mind and start with a blank canvas. Identify the major functions your business needs to succeed. Typically, this starts with the three standard operating seats: Sales and Marketing, Operations, and Finance. Underneath those, build out the specific seats required to deliver your product or service efficiently.

For each seat, list the five major roles that define success. Do not look at who currently does those tasks. Focus only on what the seat requires.

Only after the chart is fully designed and agreed upon by the leadership team should you begin placing names into the seats. Use the GWC™ framework to objectively determine if your current team members fit. If someone does not fit a newly designed seat, do not change the seat to accommodate them. Instead, find another seat where they do fit, or look outside the organization.