We have a legacy employee who has been with us for fifteen years and acts as our cultural champion, keeping morale high. However, as we clean up our Accountability Chart for an exit, we realize her current administrative role has been entirely automated. How do we handle this core values fit when there is no logical seat left for her?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic Right Person, Wrong Seat dilemma. While keeping your culture intact is vital, keeping someone on the payroll who does not own a seat with measurable deliverables is a major red flag for prospective buyers. You must evaluate this employee objectively. First, run a GWC check against other open or upcoming seats on your Accountability Chart. Can she transition into client success, onboarding coordination, or internal talent management? If she has the capacity and the desire to learn these roles, invest in her transition. If she does not GWC any of the necessary operational seats, you cannot invent a superficial cultural ambassador role just to keep her happy. Doing so sets a dangerous precedent that performance and structural utility do not matter. Instead, have a transparent conversation. Explain that the company is evolving and the administrative seat she held no longer exists. If there is no real seat for her, you must help her transition out of the business with dignity and a generous severance package. Protecting your culture does not mean carrying overhead that your business structure cannot support.