My VP of Operations was a stellar manager when we had thirty employees, but now that we have scaled to eighty, they have become a massive bottleneck. They are working eighty hours a week but their department is falling apart because they refuse to trust their direct reports. How do I determine if they can actually learn to manage managers, or if I need to find a new VP?

The transition from managing direct contributors to managing other managers is the hardest leap for any leader to make. In EOS, we define this transition by looking closely at whether they truly Get, Want, and have the Capacity to do the job, which is the GWC™ test. If your VP of Operations is working eighty hours a week, they lack the capacity, specifically the mental and emotional capacity, to elevate. They are trying to solve a scale problem with raw physical effort.

To determine if they can scale, you must force them to delegate. Sit down with them and review the Accountability Chart. Look at their seat and identify the five major roles they own. They must identify which of those roles can be handed off to their direct reports. Use the delegate and elevate tool to map out their tasks. Give them a strict sixty-day window to delegate their tactical duties.

If they cannot delegate, if they micromanage their team, or if they claim their people are not competent enough to handle the work, you have your answer. They do not GWC the scaled-up seat. You must move them to a specialist seat where they can contribute without managing people, or make the hard decision to replace them with someone who has successfully managed a department of eighty people.

Category: Leadership Team