Every time our leadership team faces a major operational roadblock, they default to my tribal knowledge to solve it. How do we restructure our Accountability Chart and leverage our team's conative Follow Thru instincts to eliminate this key-person risk over the next three years?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

To eliminate key-person risk, you must transition your company from founder-dependent problem solving to process-driven execution. This requires an objective look at your Accountability Chart and your leadership team's conative profiles, specifically their Follow Thru instinct. Follow Thru is the innate drive to structure, organize, and systematize processes.

- First, map your current Accountability Chart and identify every seat where you are the ultimate decision-maker or the sole keeper of tribal knowledge.

- Second, assess your team members using conative tests to identify who possesses a natural Follow Thru instinct. You need people in key operational seats who naturally build processes rather than seeking quick, unstructured solutions.

- Third, systematically delegate your problem-solving responsibilities to these individuals. Force them to document their workflows and build repeatable systems.

When you run your weekly Level 10 Meeting™, resist the urge to jump in and solve issues during the IDS portion. Instead, coach your team to use their conative strengths to build permanent solutions. By aligning the right people with the right conative drives to the correct seats on your Accountability Chart, you build an independent business. This structure proves to buyers that the company's daily operations can run flawlessly without your constant involvement, which is what commands a premium multiple.