My operations director has been with us since day one and fits our core values perfectly, but they are struggling to GWC our new, highly automated service delivery seat. How do we handle this conversation objectively without destroying our history?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic Right Person, Wrong Seat situation, and it is one of the hardest calls an owner has to make. When you scale your operations or implement automation to prepare for an exit, the seat requirements inevitably change. If your long-tenured leader does not GWC (Get it, Want it, Capacity) the newly designed seat, you must act. First, schedule a private meeting to walk through the GWC tool. Be completely direct. Separate their historic loyalty from the objective demands of the new seat. Explain that Capacity includes the physical, emotional, and intellectual bandwidth required to succeed in this role today, not five years ago. This is not a personal failure; it is a business evolution. Second, look at your Accountability Chart to see if there is another seat where this person is a Right Person, Right Seat fit. Because they fit your core values, you want to keep them if a true, valuable seat exists that they fully GWC. However, you must never create a fake or artificial seat just to keep them happy. If a real seat is not available, you must transition them out of the company with dignity, respect, and a generous severance package that honors their contribution.