Our long-tenured VP of Operations clearly Gets It and has the technical Capacity, but after eight years of scaling, they no longer Want the seat. How do we address a Wants It failure on a loyal leader who will not step down?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

A failure in Wants It is the hardest GWC call to make because it feels subjective. Unlike Gets It, which shows up as bad judgment, or Capacity, which shows up as missed deadlines, a lack of Want shows up as apathy, cynicism, and passive resistance.

When a loyal, tenured leader burns out, they often remain in the seat out of identity or fear of financial loss, even when the daily grind makes them miserable. They dread the Level 10 Meeting, they avoid difficult personnel conversations, and they resist new operational Rocks.

You must address this directly during a quarterly conversation. Do not accuse them or attack their work ethic. Put the Accountability Chart on the table and review the five roles of their seat.

Ask them honest questions:
- Does waking up to solve these specific problems still energize you?
- If you could design your ideal work week, would these five roles be on it?
- Are you staying in this seat because you genuinely want the operational burden, or because you feel obligated to me?

Most veteran leaders feel immense relief when an owner gives them permission to acknowledge their exhaustion. If they do not want the seat, you cannot leave them there. A disengaged leader drags down an entire department.

Explore whether there is an individual contributor seat, such as technical advisor or special projects lead, where they have true GWC. If no such seat exists on the chart, help them transition out of the business with dignity.