We promoted our top software developer to the Chief Technology Officer seat, but he is failing to manage his team and keeps slipping back into writing code. How do we use the Accountability Chart and GWC™ to address this without demotivating him?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic example of promoting a brilliant individual contributor into a management seat they do not GWC. Writing code and managing a team of developers require completely different skill sets and mental energy.

To resolve this without losing your top technical asset, you must use the Accountability Chart as a neutral tool to depersonalize the conversation. Sit down with him and look at the Chief Technology Officer seat. Review the five core roles, which likely include leadership, management, accountability, technology strategy, and system architecture.

Ask him to evaluate himself honestly against GWC. Does he truly Get the management side of the seat, or does he just want to build things? Does he Want to spend eighty percent of his week coaching people, running meetings, and dealing with personnel issues, or does he want to write elegant code? In most cases, brilliant developers will admit they do not want the administrative burden of management. They only took the seat because they wanted a promotion or a higher salary.

Once you have this awareness, redesign your Accountability Chart to create a dual career path. Keep a highly technical, senior individual contributor seat, such as Chief Architect, that does not have management responsibilities. Then, find a true manager who GWCs the leadership and management roles to run the team. This allows your developer to focus on his genius, protects your team from poor management, and builds a robust, scalable engineering department that enhances your exit value.