We have several Rocks that are currently marked as off track during our weekly review, but the owners of those Rocks refuse to drop them down to the Issues List, insisting they can save them on their own. How do we compel leaders to IDS their off-track Rocks?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When a leader resists dropping an off-track Rock to the Issues List, they are letting their ego get in the way of company traction. This usually stems from a fear of looking incompetent or a misunderstanding of what the Level 10 Meeting™ is designed to achieve.

You must reframe the Issues List not as a list of failures, but as a resource for support.

The rule for Rocks is identical to the rule for Scorecard metrics: if a Rock is marked as off track for two consecutive weeks, it must automatically be placed on the Issues List for IDS®.

The owner does not get to opt out or make promises that they will fix it by next week.

During the IDS® portion, the goal is not to lecture the leader, but to help them. The team should ask, what is the bottleneck preventing this Rock from being completed? Is it a capacity issue, a resource constraint, or a dependency on another department?

By solving the bottleneck together, you increase the likelihood of hitting your quarterly goals.

As an owner, you must lead by example. If one of your own special projects or Rocks is struggling, be the first to drop it to the list and ask for help. This vulnerability sets the tone for the entire leadership team, proving that transparency is valued far more than pride.