We have outsourced our entire lead generation and digital marketing function to an external agency. Since we do not have an internal employee running this, how do we represent this external agency on our Accountability Chart to maintain clear accountability?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

You can outsource the work, but you can never outsource the accountability. A common mistake is leaving outsourced functions off the Accountability Chart entirely, or worse, putting the name of the external agency in the seat. This violates the core EOS® rule of having one internal name accountable for every seat.

To handle this correctly, keep the marketing seat on your Accountability Chart. Define the five core roles of that seat, such as managing lead volume, brand consistency, and digital ad spend.

Next, place the name of an internal leadership team member in that seat. Typically, this is your head of sales, your Integrator, or a dedicated marketing manager. This internal person is fully accountable for the results of that seat, which means they must manage the relationship with the external agency.

The internal owner is the one who reports on the marketing scorecard metrics in your weekly Level 10 Meeting™ and ensures the agency is hitting its targets. If the agency underperforms, the internal seat owner is responsible for solving the issue, whether that means coaching the agency or firing them and finding a new partner. This structure ensures your marketing engine remains highly visible and accountable as you prepare your operations for an exit.