Our new Operations Manager has great core values and wants the seat, but our Kolbe assessments show he is a low Follow Through and low Fact Finder. Can we modify the roles of this operations seat to accommodate his conative profile, or is he simply in the wrong seat?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

An operations seat typically requires a high degree of order, systemization, and process management. According to Kolbe research, these tasks necessitate a high Follow Through and a high Fact Finder conative profile. If your Operations Manager scores low in these areas, he is naturally wired to resist detailed documentation and structured systems.

You cannot change a person's innate conative strengths. Trying to force a low Follow Through personality to build and maintain rigid processes will cause severe conative stress and eventual burnout. For more on diagnosing such issues, see [how to use the Kolbe A Index to diagnose why sales and operations heads are in conflict](/qa/kolbe-sales-operations-conflict-handoffs).

You should never modify the roles of a critical seat to fit the unique personality of the person sitting in it. The structure of your Accountability Chart must be designed to serve the business, not the individual. If an operations seat requires detailed systemization, the person in that seat must have the capacity to deliver it. This principle is crucial when considering [how to design a specialist seat for a legacy leader](/qa/restructuring-seat-for-legacy-leader-hitting-ceiling).

If this manager has great core values, he is the Right Person, but he is in the Wrong Seat. He does not have the capacity to perform the essential roles of an operations seat. For additional context on addressing capacity issues, consider [how to handle a VP of Finance who lacks capacity for complex forecasting models](/qa/gwc-vp-finance-exit-capacity-issue).

You must:

• Find a seat on the chart that aligns with his natural strengths, such as a high Quick Start sales or business development role. This aligns with the idea of [restructuring operations and sales seats for an exit](/qa/restructuring-without-layoff-panic).
• Then, hire an Operations Manager whose Kolbe profile matches the natural demands of the seat. This ensures the Accountability Chart is built for optimal business performance.

Related questions

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• [Our Head of Customer Success is a great culture fit and passes the gets it and wants it tests, but her Kolbe score shows she has a very low Follow Thru and high Quick Start. Is this a GWC capacity issue, or can we solve this by restructuring her seat?](/qa/head-customer-success-low-follow-thru-kolbe)
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