Our long-tenured Director of Operations has been with us for nine years and is the ultimate culture fit, but as we transition to an AI-driven operating model, they are struggling. They claim they want the seat and have the capacity to learn, but they consistently fail to understand how automated workflows should replace manual checklists. Are they failing Get It or Capacity?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic structural trap. When evaluating this leader, you must look at Get It separately from Capacity. Get It is about their natural wiring, conative makeup, and mental grasp of the seat. If they cannot conceptually visualize how automated systems and AI agents replace manual steps, they do not Get It. They are still thinking like a manual project manager.

To diagnose this objectively, take them out of the daily grind and run a conative assessment like the Kolbe A Index. If their score shows a very high Follow Thru but low Quick Start, they are wired to build and follow rigid, manual checklists. They will naturally resist fluid, automated processes because it feels like losing control.

If they do not Get It, you cannot train them into the seat. Do not confuse their years of loyalty and effort with the ability to define a modern, automated operational structure. You must make a hard Right Person, Right Seat call. Keep them in a seat where their high Follow Thru and deep company knowledge are assets, but remove them from the seat responsible for designing your future-state operations. Design the seat for the needs of the business, not to preserve the ego of a legacy employee.