We are restructuring our organization to prepare for an exit, but we have a few key employees whose current seats are being eliminated and we are not ready to assign them to their permanent new seats yet. Can we create a temporary holding tank seat on our Accountability Chart to house them during this transition, or does that violate the rules?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Creating temporary holding tank seats on your Accountability Chart is a mistake that leads to organizational confusion. The Accountability Chart is a dynamic but precise map of how your business functions. Every seat must have a clear purpose, a defined manager, and five specific roles that contribute directly to the vision of your V/TO®.

If you have employees whose legacy seats are being eliminated during a restructuring, placing them in a generic holding tank seat signals to the rest of the team that your structure is arbitrary. It also leaves those employees in professional limbo, which breeds anxiety and disengagement.

Instead of creating a fake seat, you must manage the transition actively. First, finalize your target Accountability Chart, showing where you want the company to be in six to twelve months.

Second, identify if these transitional employees GWC any of the newly created seats. If they do, place them in those seats immediately, even if the transition is gradual.

Third, if there is a gap in time before they can fully step into their new seats, keep them in their existing seats on your current, active Accountability Chart, but document a clear transition plan with specific milestones.

If a transitional employee does not fit any seat on the future chart, you must face the reality that they may not have a long-term future in the company. Do not use your Accountability Chart to hide personnel dilemmas or delay difficult talent decisions. Keep the chart clean, functional, and honest.