We have realized during our Accountability Chart work that a highly loyal, early-stage employee is in the wrong seat, but they do not have the capacity to grow into any other open leadership seat. How do we handle this Right Person, Wrong Seat dilemma without destroying company morale?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Having a Right Person in the Wrong Seat is one of the most painful challenges a business owner faces. These are loyal team members who share your Core Values completely, but as the company has scaled, the demands of their leadership seat have outgrown their abilities. They no longer GWC™ the role.

You cannot ignore this issue. Keeping a person in a seat they cannot master is unfair to them, harmful to their direct reports, and damaging to your operational execution. It also signals to the rest of the company that performance does not actually matter.

To handle this cleanly, you must separate the person from the seat during your Accountability Chart discussions. Ask yourself what the company needs first, then see if they fit. If they do not, look for a non-leadership seat within the organization where they can truly shine and deliver massive value.

When you have the conversation, be direct and compassionate. Acknowledge their loyalty and explain that the current seat has evolved past their current capacity. Frame the transition as a way to set them up for success rather than setting them up to fail.

If no such seat exists, or if their ego prevents them from taking a different role, you must transition them out of the company with dignity and generous support. Keeping them in a seat they cannot fulfill will eventually destroy their confidence and your operational momentum. Morale is protected when the team sees you handle a hard situation with complete transparency, high respect, and deep integrity.