As we prepare for an exit, we have designed a due diligence and deal room administrator seat to manage our virtual data room, but absolutely nobody on our leadership team wants to own it because it is tedious and high-stress. How do we assign this critical seat without destroying morale?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

You cannot leave a critical seat vacant or expect it to be run by a committee just because it is tedious. In EOS®, every seat on your Accountability Chart must have one name, and that person must fully GWC™ it. If nobody on your leadership team wants the seat or has the capacity for it, forcing it on a resentful executive is a recipe for a failed exit process. Missing files and sloppy data rooms can kill a deal quickly. To resolve this, you must treat this seat like any other operational gap. First, look outside your leadership team. Is there a highly organized administrative professional in your company who has the capacity and the desire to step up? If so, map the seat under your Integrator or CFO and elevate that person. If you do not have internal talent, you must hire external help. This is where a fractional resource or a specialized transaction coordinator can fill the seat. Their sole accountability will be organizing and updating your deal room, managing advisor requests, and securing your tribal knowledge. This protects your leadership team so they can focus on hitting their Rocks and maintaining the performance of the business. Remember, a clean, well-managed data room is a key driver of exit readiness. Do not compromise your valuation by trying to force an internal team member to own a seat they do not want.