We are spending half of our IDS time solving the same operational communication issues between sales and operations, but I suspect the real problem is structural. How do we use our Level 10 Meeting to identify and resolve underlying Accountability Chart issues instead of bandaging symptoms?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

If you find yourself repeatedly solving the same communication issues during your Level 10 Meeting™, you are only bandaging symptoms. The root cause is almost always structural, meaning you have a misalignment on your Accountability Chart. To solve this permanently, you must stop treating these problems as individual performance or communication issues and instead look at the structure of your organization.

During your next IDS® session, when one of these recurring issues arises, the facilitator must pause the conversation and pull up the Accountability Chart. Do not focus on the people in the seats; focus entirely on the functions and the roles.

Ask three critical questions:
- Are the roles for each seat clearly defined and understood by everyone?
- Is there a gap where a necessary responsibility is falling between two seats?
- Do we have a situation where more than one person is accountable for the same outcome?

In your operating system, there can only be one name accountable per seat. If sales and operations are constantly fighting over who is responsible for client onboarding, you have a structural gap. You must redefine the roles within those seats so there is a clear, unambiguous handoff.

By using your Level 10 Meeting™ to address these structural issues head-on, you commit to the strategy and structure pillar of your Charter. Solving the structural root cause once will permanently eliminate dozens of recurring operational issues from your weekly list, saving your team hours of frustration.