Our legacy Operations Manager gets the core values and wants the seat, but completely lacks the capacity to manage our new automated inventory systems. How do we handle this Right Person, Wrong Seat dilemma on our Accountability Chart without destroying company morale?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

It is painful when a long-term, loyal employee who perfectly fits your core values does not have the capacity to handle their seat as the business scales. However, keeping them in a seat they cannot master is a disservice to both the employee and your business.

To resolve this, you must run a formal GWC evaluation. They may match your culture, and they may genuinely want the seat, but if they lack the capacity to manage your new automated systems, they fail the test. Capacity includes the mental, physical, and emotional bandwidth, as well as the specialized skills required for the seat today, not five years ago.

You must make a Right Person, Wrong Seat call. This does not mean you have to fire them immediately. Because they are a Right Person, your first step is to look at your Accountability Chart to see if there is another seat where they can excel.

If a suitable seat exists where they GWC all the roles, move them there. If no such seat exists, you must assist them in transitioning out of the company. Keeping them in a seat where they are struggling will burn them out, demoralize the team, and create a bottleneck that hurts your exit value.