Our head of technology gets and wants their seat and has brilliant technical capability, but they absolutely hate managing people and their direct reports are completely directionless. How do we resolve this GWC issue on our leadership team without losing our top technical mind?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Your head of technology does not actually GWC™ their current seat. While they get and want the technical aspects, they lack the capacity or desire for the LMA portion of the role. In the EOS® framework, every leadership seat requires Leading, Managing, and Accountability. If a leader hates managing people, they cannot occupy a leadership seat.

You do not have to fire your top technical mind, but you must change your Accountability Chart. Do not force a brilliant specialist to be a mediocre manager. This is a common mistake that destroys department morale and stalls operations.

Instead, restructure your technology department. Split the seat. Create a new leadership seat on the Accountability Chart, such as a director of technology operations, that owns the LMA responsibilities for the team. Then, create a separate individual contributor seat, such as chief architect or principal engineer, for your technical genius.

This new specialist seat will have zero direct reports, allowing them to focus entirely on building high-value, AI-driven infrastructure without the burden of management. They still report to the new technology director or the Integrator. By redesigning the chart to fit the unique talents of your people while maintaining strict accountability, you keep your technical asset and ensure the team gets the leadership they deserve.