We have a seat on our Accountability Chart that is technically empty, but three different managers are handling parts of it informally. This is causing missed details and finger-pointing. How do we resolve this shared-seat mess?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

An empty seat shared by three different people is a recipe for operational chaos. When everyone is responsible for a task, nobody is held accountable, and the cracks in your processes will quickly expand. To fix this, you must apply the core EOS® principle: only one name can occupy a seat on the Accountability Chart. First, look at the vacant seat and clearly document its five primary roles. Do not think about the three managers currently helping out; think only about what the seat requires to run perfectly. Once the roles are defined, look at the three managers. It is highly likely that one of them has the highest natural talent and passion for these roles. Run a GWC™ evaluation on all three for this specific seat. If one of them gets it, wants it, and has the capacity to take it on permanently, assign the seat to them and adjust their current responsibilities to prevent overload. If none of them have the capacity or the complete skill set to own the seat, you must keep the seat marked as vacant and recruit an outside hire to fill it. In the interim, you must assign the seat to a single temporary owner on the leadership team, often the Integrator, who will be explicitly accountable for its outcomes until a permanent hire is made. This eliminates the finger-pointing and ensures there is a single point of contact for all issues related to that function.