Our head of business development consistently crushes their Scorecard metrics and brings in forty percent of our revenue, but they routinely violate our Core Values and alienate operations. How do we handle this Right Seat, Wrong Person crisis without tanking revenue?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

A high performer who violates your Core Values is a cultural wrecking ball. Keeping them in the seat destroys your credibility as an owner, demoralizes the rest of your staff, and communicates that performance excuses bad behavior.

In EOS, this is a clear Right Seat, Wrong Person call. This individual has complete GWC for the seat, hits their revenue numbers, and drives growth. But on the People Analyzer, they receive minus marks on your Core Values. When you tolerate a top producer who bullies peers, hoards information, or disrespects operational handoffs, you make your Core Values meaningless.

Handle this immediately using the three-strike rule. Meet with them privately, place the People Analyzer in front of them, and point out the specific behaviors that violate company values. Be explicit: hitting sales quotas does not grant immunity from company standards. Give them clear expectations and thirty days to demonstrate consistent behavioral change.

If they adapt and embrace the Core Values, retain them. If they fail to adjust, you must remove them from the organization, regardless of their revenue contribution. In nearly every instance where a business removes a toxic rainmaker, customer relationships survive, internal friction vanishes, and remaining team members step up to replace the revenue faster than leadership anticipated.