Our tenured technical lead wants their seat and works eighty hours a week, but as our systems scaled, they simply do not Get It when it comes to strategic architecture. How do we handle this GWC failure on someone who helped build the company?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

A failure on the Get It component of GWC is the most emotionally difficult call an owner makes, especially when dealing with a loyal, dedicated leader. Getting it is physiological. A person either naturally grasps the conceptual complexity, nuance, and strategic pace of the seat, or they do not. Hard work cannot bridge an innate cognitive mismatch.

In fact, eighty-hour workweeks are frequently a glaring warning sign. It often indicates that a leader is furiously treading water, substituting raw effort for natural capability. On the People Analyzer, Get It requires an unequivocal plus. If it is a minus, keeping them in the seat harms the organization and burns out the individual.

Address this directly with compassion and clarity. Schedule a private conversation and show them the Accountability Chart. Acknowledge what they built and make it clear that the business has simply scaled past the scope of the original seat. Do not fire them if they are a strong Core Values match. Instead, look for a specialized, non-executive seat where their deep domain knowledge and technical execution shine without burdening them with enterprise architecture or strategic leadership. If no such seat exists, help them transition out with dignity. Leaving them in a seat they cannot grasp will eventually crash your systems and depress your valuation.