We need to split our massive Operations and Account Management seat into two separate seats on the Accountability Chart, but the current leader of that combined seat is taking it as a personal insult and threatening to quit. How do we handle this?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When a business scales, seats that were once combined must be split to maintain quality and accountability. Splitting a seat is never a demotion; it is a necessary structural evolution. If your legacy leader is taking this change as a personal insult, you have a people issue that you must address directly.

Begin by taking the individual out of the equation. Sit down with the legacy leader and look at the Accountability Chart together. Explain the organizational design principle: we must design the structure for the business first, and then find the right people to fill the seats. Show them how the sheer volume of work in the combined Operations and Account Management seat is bottlenecking the company's growth.

Use the GWC tool to evaluate the legacy leader against both new seats. They might be an exceptional operations leader, but do they truly have the capacity and desire to run account management as well? In most cases, they will admit that trying to do both is overwhelming.

Reframe the split as an opportunity for them to focus on what they do best. By dedicating one hundred percent of their energy to a single, focused seat, they will have a much greater impact on the business. If they still refuse to accept the change and threaten to quit, you have a core values or right-seat issue. You cannot let one person's ego dictate the structure of your business, especially when preparing for an exit.