We have long-term directors who excel at their traditional roles but struggle to GWC their newly expanded, AI-powered responsibilities. How do we handle this transition on the Accountability Chart without losing our most loyal leaders?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a common friction point when businesses transition to AI-powered operations. Loyal leaders who have been with you for years suddenly feel out of their depth because the skills that made them successful in the past are not the skills required for the future. You must address this transition directly using GWC™ (Get It, Want It, Capacity to Do It). First, redefine the seats on your Accountability Chart to reflect the new, AI-augmented reality. If a director's seat now requires them to design automated workflows and focus purely on high-level strategic outcomes rather than managing daily manual tasks, you must evaluate them against these updated accountabilities. Ask yourself if they truly Get It, Want It, and have the Capacity to do it. Sometimes, an employee has the Get It and Want It, but lacks the technical or strategic Capacity. In these cases, provide targeted training to help them become an indispensable complement to the new systems. However, if they lack the desire to work in an AI-driven environment, or if they simply cannot shift from telling people what to do to empowering their teams with technology, they no longer fit the seat. For the health of your business and your long-term exit goals under the Step by Step Exit framework, you must make the hard decision to find someone who fits the seat, or realign their talents to a different role where they can truly succeed.