Our VP of Operations was employee number two fifteen years ago, but our business growth has completely outpaced her. When evaluating her GWC, she insists she gets and wants it, but her daily execution shows she lacks capacity. How do we make this call objectively?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Tenure is not a seat on the Accountability Chart, and loyalty does not create operational capacity. When evaluating GWC, each element must be a clear yes. Get means she intuitively understands the role. Want means she wakes up energized to lead it. Capacity means she has the mental, emotional, physical, and time bandwidth to execute the five core roles of the seat at the company's current and future size.

A leader who built your operational systems a decade ago often lacks the capacity to run a multi-million-dollar modern enterprise. When Capacity is a no, the overall answer to Right Seat is an absolute no. Keeping her in the seat out of sentimental guilt will frustrate your frontline staff, bottleneck your company, and cause your high-performing talent to quit.

Handle the conversation directly using the People Analyzer. Affirm that she is 100 percent the Right Person based on your Core Values. Then present the facts of the seat objectively. Review the five core roles, your quarterly Rocks, and the measurable results the seat requires. Show where the capacity deficit is breaking the operation.

Give her an honest choice. If there is a specialized operational seat on the chart where she has full GWC, transition her into that seat with dignity. If no such seat exists, help her exit the business honorably. Protecting someone who lacks capacity does not show kindness. It simply drags out an inevitable failure.