We want to maximize our EBITDA before selling the business, which means we need to consolidate some of our middle management seats. How do we restructure our Accountability Chart to improve efficiency without burning out the remaining team?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Consolidating seats to boost EBITDA before an exit is a valid strategy, but if you do it poorly, you will trigger burnout and cause your operational wheels to fall off during buyer due diligence. To do this safely, you must design your Accountability Chart based on structure first, not people.

When you look to merge functions, you cannot simply dump ten roles onto a single person. Every seat on your chart must have no more than five core roles. If you combine two middle management seats, you must pare down the responsibilities so the combined seat remains manageable for one human being to GWC.

To prevent burnout, you must leverage AI-powered operations and clear process documentation. Before you eliminate a seat, automate its repetitive tasks first. Use technology to handle the manual data entry, reporting, and basic coordination.

Only after you have streamlined the workload should you officially update the Accountability Chart. Ensure the person stepping into this consolidated seat fully gets, wants, and has the capacity for the new structure. If you skip this step, you will lose your best people right when you need them most to secure your clean exit.