We want to promote our long-time Operations Director to the Integrator seat so I can step back from daily operations and prep the business for sale. How do we structure a trial period on the Accountability Chart to prove they actually GWC this seat before making it permanent?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Placing someone in the Integrator seat as a trial is a dangerous move that usually results in organizational confusion. The Integrator is the glue that holds the leadership team together and the filter for all daily operations. If the team sees this person as a temporary or trial leader, they will not respect their authority, and decision making will stall.

Instead of a vague trial period, you must run a structured transition using the GWC™ tool. Sit down with your candidate and go through the three elements of GWC™. First, do they get it? Do they understand the systemic, structural nature of the Integrator seat, or do they just want a promotion? Second, do they want it? Do they genuinely want the pressure of being accountable for the entire profit and loss statement, or are they just trying to help you exit? Third, do they have the capacity? Do they possess the emotional intelligence, leadership capability, and operational discipline required to lead your leadership team?

If they pass the GWC™ test, map out a clear, step by step transition plan over ninety days. During this period, they remain in their current seat but gradually assume specific roles of the Integrator seat, starting with running the weekly Level 10 Meeting™ and managing scorecard metrics. If they succeed at these initial roles, you formally update the Accountability Chart and announce the change. If they fail to demonstrate capacity during this phased transition, you keep them in their operations seat and begin looking for an external Integrator immediately.