Our Operations Director has been with the company since we started in my garage. He is family to us and a perfect core values fit, but as we scale, he is struggling to manage our larger team and new technology. How do we run a GWC™ check on a loyal, long-tenured leader without making them feel pushed out?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is one of the hardest calls an owner has to make, but you must separate love from performance to build an exit-ready business. Using the GWC™ tool is the most objective, unsentimental way to evaluate if this loyal leader is still in the Right Seat.

GWC™ stands for Get it, Want it, and Capacity to do the job. First, does he truly understand the seat's modern requirements? Second, does he genuinely want the daily responsibility and stress of leading a larger team? Third, does he have the mental, physical, and emotional capacity to execute this high-level role today, not five years ago?

If the answer to any of these is no, then he is in the Wrong Seat, despite being the Right Person. You must address this honestly. Sit down with him and use the Accountability Chart to show how the seat has grown. Frame the conversation around his long-term happiness and the health of the business.

If he lacks the capacity for the director seat, look for a different seat where he can succeed and pass GWC™, such as a senior technical role. If no such seat exists, you must help him make a graceful transition out of the company. Keeping a person in a seat they cannot GWC™ is unfair to them and holds the entire organization back.