Our head of human resources is the absolute cultural anchor of our company and perfectly embodies our Core Values, but they consistently fail to hit their departmental Rocks and cannot seem to run their seat effectively. How do we address this misalignment without destroying our company culture?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic Right Person, Wrong Seat dilemma. Your head of human resources matches your company culture perfectly, but they lack the capability or capacity to deliver the operational results required for their seat.

You cannot ignore this performance gap. If you allow a cultural champion to miss their targets consistently, you erode accountability across the entire leadership team. Other department heads will notice the double standard and lose motivation.

Start by using the GWC framework to evaluate their fit for the current seat. They clearly get and want the company's culture, but do they have the actual capacity to run a modern HR department? Capacity includes their skills, experience, and conative strengths. Check their Kolbe A profile; they may have a conative style that struggles with the structural and analytical demands of the role.

If they do not GWC the seat, you must make a change. However, because they are a cultural asset, do not immediately exit them from the business. Look at your Accountability Chart to see if there is another seat where their cultural strengths can shine, such as recruiting, employee engagement, or customer success. If a suitable seat exists, transition them. If no such seat exists, you must let them go. Your culture is sustained by holding people accountable to high standards, not by protecting underperformers.