Our operations director was fantastic when we were a ten-million-dollar company, but now that we are pushing twenty-five million and gearing up for an exit, they are clearly drowning in the strategic demands of the seat. How do we address this scaling gap without destroying their confidence or causing a mutiny?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When your business outgrows a leader, you must address the gap immediately. Leaving someone in a seat they cannot handle is cruel to them and damaging to the business, especially when preparing for an exit. A buyer will evaluate your leadership team on their ability to run the business without you, and a drowning director is a massive red flag.

Start by separating the person from the seat. Use the GWC tool. Does this director truly understand, want, and have the capacity to do this job at a twenty-five-million-dollar level? Capacity is usually the issue. It is not about intelligence or work ethic; it is about the mental bandwidth and strategic capability required to manage a much larger, more complex operation.

Have a candid, compassionate conversation. Acknowledge their past contributions and explain that the requirements of the seat have changed. You have two options. You can either restructure the Accountability Chart to create a smaller, more focused seat that they can successfully own, or you can bring in a seasoned executive above them and transition them to a supporting role.

Whichever path you choose, make the decision quickly. The rest of your leadership team is watching. If they see you tolerating subpar performance in a key seat, it lowers the bar for everyone and erodes the trust required to run a high-performing organization. Protect the business first, and handle the transition with the dignity your loyal leader deserves.