We built our original Accountability Chart around the skills of our existing team members, but now we are preparing for an exit and realize our structure is highly inefficient. How do we redesign our chart based on the ideal future state of the business without causing a mass resignation?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Building an Accountability Chart around people rather than the ideal structure of the organization is a common trap. It creates custom, Frankenstein seats that are impossible to replace when you try to sell the business. To build a highly valuable company, you must design the structure first, completely ignoring the people you currently employ. Start with a blank sheet of paper. Define the major functions your business needs to hit its three-year target and maximize its valuation. For an exit-ready company, this usually includes clear seats for sales, marketing, operations, finance, and perhaps technology or integration. Define the five major roles and responsibilities for each seat to ensure absolute clarity. Only after the structure is completely designed do you look at your people and place their names in the seats. You will inevitably find that some people do not fit their new seats, or that some seats are vacant. This is where you must make hard Right Person, Right Seat calls. Communicate the changes to your team with absolute transparency. Explain that this new structure is designed to support the future growth of the company and secure everyone's long-term success. While some people may resist the change or choose to leave, keeping an inefficient structure just to keep people comfortable will ultimately tank your exit value.