Our VP of Sales has been with us for eight years, fits our culture perfectly, and wants to stay. However, we recently transitioned from an outbound relationship model to a tech-enabled inside sales model, and he clearly does not understand how to manage this new process. How do we make this GWC call?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic Right Person, Wrong Seat dilemma. Your VP of Sales has the core values, which makes him a Right Person. However, the seat has evolved. The roles on your Accountability Chart for this seat now require deep expertise in CRM pipelines, data analytics, and digital lead flow.

When you run him through the GWC tool, you must evaluate him against the current and future requirements of the seat, not his past contributions.

Does he truly Get It? Getting it means having the natural cognitive capability and systemic understanding of how a modern, data-driven sales department operates. Based on his performance, he does not.

Does he Want It? He might want the title and the compensation, but does he want the actual day-to-day work of managing tech stacks and analyzing pipeline metrics?

Does he have the Capacity? Capacity includes the conative wiring and technical skills to execute the role.

You cannot compromise on GWC. If he fails any of these three elements, he is in the wrong seat. Keeping him there will cause operational friction and hold back your growth. You must have an honest, compassionate conversation. You have two choices: find another seat on the Accountability Chart where he fully GWCs the roles, or help him transition out of the business entirely.