Our leadership team is stuck in a massive debate over corporate titles like Vice President versus Director, and it is stalling our progress in finalizing our Accountability Chart. How do we get past these ego-driven title arguments so we can focus on true structure?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

In EOS, we do not care about fancy corporate titles. Titles are often used as emotional band-aids to reward people, but they actually cloud real accountability. When building your Accountability Chart, you must banish titles from the conversation entirely and focus exclusively on seats and functions.

The chart has three major functions: Sales and Marketing, Operations, and Finance, led by an Integrator and supported by a Visionary. Instead of debating who gets to be a Vice President, focus on defining the five key roles for each seat. Ask your team who has the GWC for each specific set of responsibilities.

If someone is obsessed with their title, it is usually a sign of insecurity or ego, not a focus on the health of the business. Explain to your team that potential buyers do not care about high-sounding titles; they care about a clean, functional structure where one name is accountable for each seat. Once you have defined the ideal future structure and placed the right people in the right seats, you can assign external-facing titles if absolutely necessary for client relations, but keep your internal chart strictly focused on roles and accountability.