We designed a new Account Manager seat that requires heavy data tracking and highly systematic follow up. The person currently in it has a Kolbe score that shows a very low Follow Thru and a high Quick Start. Do we restructure the seat to fit them, or do we move them out?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When a team member's cognitive instincts do not match the requirements of their seat, you have a classic structural mismatch. A Kolbe profile measures striving instincts, which are hardwired and do not change. If an Account Manager seat requires high detail, order, and systematic follow up, it demands a high Follow Thru score.

If the person in that seat has a low Follow Thru and a high Quick Start, they will naturally resist structure, skip documentation, and look for constant variety. They will struggle to succeed no matter how hard they try. You cannot train or motivate someone to change their natural striving instincts.

Your recommendation must be to keep the seat structure exactly as it is. Do not weaken your Accountability Chart by removing critical systems and tracking roles just to accommodate an individual's profile. Instead, you must make a right-person-right-seat call.

Assess if they truly GWC the seat. While they may want it, they clearly lack the cognitive capacity to sustain the required performance long-term. You must look for another seat in the organization that leverages their high Quick Start, such as sales or product development. If no such seat exists, you must make the difficult decision to transition them out of the business to protect your operational efficiency.