We identified that our longtime warehouse director is a Right Person in the Wrong Seat because the seat outgrew him, but we do not have an open seat that fits his skills today. How long should we keep a Right Person in the Wrong Seat while looking for an internal fit before we have to make the hard call to part ways?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Thirty days is the maximum window to identify or create a legitimate seat for a Right Person in the Wrong Seat. Extending it longer damages the organization, stalls your team, and humiliates the employee.

When a loyal employee is a core values fit but fails GWC for their current seat, owners often drag out the decision for months. They tell themselves they are being compassionate. In reality, they are avoiding a difficult conversation while operational balls drop in the warehouse. Your other leaders see the failure and lose respect for your accountability standards.

Use a disciplined process:
First, confirm they are truly a Right Person. If they have even one minus on your Core Values, they are not a Right Person, and the conversation is a clean termination, not a reassignment.

Second, review your Accountability Chart. Do you have a legitimate, unfunded, or open seat that genuinely needs to be filled and matches their GWC? If yes, look at the five roles. Can this person step into that seat and deliver the measurable scorecard numbers the business requires?

Never invent a seat. Do not create titles like Director of Special Operations or Warehouse Consultant just to park a loyal friend. If the business does not organically need that seat to function, you are burdening your payroll with overhead that delivers no return.

If no real seat exists within thirty days, sit down with them. Acknowledge their contributions, explain that the business has evolved beyond their operational seat, and treat them with immense dignity. Provide a fair severance package and help them find a role at a company where their specific capacity matches the seat.