The first 90 days of our EOS® implementation are exposing a massive performance gap in a key leader who has been with us for ten years. How do we survive this initial execution cycle without the whole team losing faith?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is the most common point of friction in the first ninety days. The structural clarity of the Accountability Chart and the objectivity of the weekly Scorecard make performance gaps impossible to hide. When a legacy leader struggles, the rest of the team is watching to see if you will choose loyalty over accountability. You must address this immediately to maintain your momentum.

First, separate the person from the seat. Use the GWC™ tool to evaluate if they truly get, want, and have the capacity to do the job. If they do not, you have a seat issue. Next, evaluate them against your core values. If they share your values but simply cannot handle the seat as the business scales, you need to find a seat they do GWC™, or help them transition out of the business with dignity.

Do not drag this process out. Keeping a struggling leader in a critical seat out of sentimentality will destroy the credibility of your entire EOS® implementation. Your team will not lose faith if you make a hard decision; they will lose faith if you tolerate mediocre performance while demanding execution from everyone else. Use the first ninety days to establish that accountability is real and that the Accountability Chart is the final authority on how the business is run.