Our Head of HR has been with us for nine years. She is a core values match and everyone loves her, but she lacks the strategic capacity to manage our new multi-state payroll compliance and complex equity incentive plans. She says she wants the seat, but she is clearly drowning and making critical administrative errors. How do we make the GWC call here without destroying our team's morale?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic GWC issue where a loyal leader lacks the Capacity for the evolving seat. To handle this cleanly, you must separate the person from the seat. Right now, your Head of HR is a Right Person in the Wrong Seat because the seat has outgrown her capabilities.

Start by defining the future HR seat on your Accountability Chart. Document the five core roles required for a business of your scale, such as multi-state compliance, compensation design, and strategic recruiting. Do this without her name in the box. Once the seat is defined, evaluate her objectively using the GWC™ tool. Does she truly Get it, Want it, and have the physical, mental, and emotional Capacity to do it?

If the answer to Capacity is no, you must remove her from that seat. Keeping her there is unfair to her and dangerous for the company. Because she is a core values fit, look for other seats on your Accountability Chart where she can be a Right Person in a Right Seat, perhaps focusing purely on talent acquisition or cultural programs. If no such seat exists or if she refuses a different role, you must transition her out of the business. Keeping a person in a seat they cannot fulfill out of loyalty is a disservice to the rest of the team and will ultimately cap your growth.