One of our critical executive team members has a family emergency right before our scheduled quarterly session. Do we proceed without them, or do we reschedule the entire day?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

As a rule of thumb, we do not reschedule quarterly sessions unless the missing person is the Integrator or the Visionary, or if multiple key leaders are out simultaneously. The ninety-day cycle is sacred. If you start postponing sessions because one person is absent, you break the operational momentum of the entire company, and your leadership team will begin to lose trust in the predictability of the system.

If a department head cannot make it, the rest of the leadership team must step up and represent that department. Before the session, the missing member should send their updates, their Rock progress, and any issues they want placed on the issues list to another team member or the Integrator.

During the session, we will keep going. The absent member must accept the decisions made by the team in their absence. This reinforces the idea that the leadership team is collectively responsible for the entire business, not just their individual silos. It also tests the strength of your communication channels, forcing you to onboard the missing member immediately after the session so they are aligned for the next ninety days.