Our Operations Director is a perfect core values fit and has been with us for a decade, but as we build our exit-ready superstructure, they struggle to manage the data-driven scorecard metrics required for our automated workflows. How do we make this Right Seat call?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

This is a classic Right Person, Wrong Seat dilemma. Your Operations Director fits your core values, meaning they are the right person, but they do not GWC their current seat as the business scales and automates. GWC stands for Get It, Want It, and Capacity to do it. While they might want the seat, they lack the analytical capacity to manage complex data metrics and automated operational workflows. Keeping them in this seat out of loyalty is holding your business back and will ultimately hurt your exit valuation, as buyers look for data-driven operational discipline. To resolve this, you must have an honest, compassionate, and direct conversation. Use the Accountability Chart to show them how the roles of the Operations Director seat have evolved. Walk through the GWC tool with them. Explain that while they are a valued part of the company culture, the current seat requires technical and analytical capabilities that do not match their strengths. Your goal is to find or create a different seat in the organization where they can succeed, one that they truly GWC, such as customer relations or legacy account management. If no such seat exists, you must make the hard decision to let them go. Keeping someone in a seat they cannot perform is unfair to them and dangerous for your business.