My business partner and I are constantly debating who owns what on the leadership team, and our team is starting to take sides. How do we use a formal Charter to align our partnership and protect the leadership team from our politics?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Partner friction on a leadership team is highly toxic. It creates confusion, slows down execution, and forces your executive team to play political games instead of focusing on their seats. To stop this, you and your partner must create a formal Charter.

Your Charter is a written covenant that defines the rules of engagement for your partnership. It must be built on three core pillars: Trust, Same Page, and Yes! to Strategy and Structure.

The Trust pillar requires both partners to commit to open, honest communication. You must agree that any partner-level disagreements will be handled privately, never in front of the leadership team.

The Same Page pillar requires you to meet regularly in a private setting to align your vision. If you disagree on a strategic direction, you must work it out offline before bringing a unified voice to the leadership team.

The Yes! to Strategy and Structure pillar requires you to respect the Accountability Chart. You must define which partner sits in which seat and commit to staying in your respective lanes. If your partner is the Integrator, you must respect their authority over operations, even if you are the majority owner.

By documenting and signing this Charter, you create a shared standard of behavior that protects your leadership team and ensures you always present a united front.