My head of business development brings in forty percent of our revenue, but they consistently violate our core values by treating our delivery team like second-class citizens. The rest of the leadership team is demanding I fire them, but I am terrified of the immediate revenue hit. How do I handle a toxic high-performer who fails the core values test?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Keeping a toxic high-performer is a short-term financial decision that guarantees long-term cultural bankruptcy. When you allow your head of business development to abuse the delivery team because they bring in revenue, you are sending a clear message to your entire company: your core values are a lie, and money is the only thing that matters. This destroys trust at the leadership table.

Addressing the Issue

You must use the People Analyzer™ tool to address this immediately. This tool helps you assess whether individuals align with your company's core values.

• Rate this leader against your core values.
• If they consistently receive minus or plus-minus ratings on key values, they do not belong in your company.
• No amount of revenue justifies destroying the morale of your operations team or [building vulnerability and safety in leadership](/qa/building-vulnerability-and-safety-in-leadership).

The Conversation and Consequences

Have a direct, documented conversation with the individual.

• Show them the People Analyzer™ results.
• Explain exactly where they are failing to uphold the company's core values.
• Give them thirty days to correct their behavior.
• Make it clear that their performance metrics do not exempt them from your company's culture. For more on ensuring accountability, consider [promoting an internal Operations Manager to the Integrator seat](/qa/promoting-internal-operations-manager-integrator).

If they do not change, you must fire them. While you may experience a temporary revenue hit, you will find that:

• Your delivery team's productivity rises.
• Your leadership team aligns. For tips on fostering alignment and avoiding infighting, see [breaking up executive factions and cliques](/qa/breaking-up-executive-factions-cliques).
• You build a healthier, more sustainable culture. This proactive approach helps in [identifying operational risks before buyer due diligence](/qa/identifying-operational-risks-before-buyer-due-diligence) if you ever plan to sell.

A clean exit is impossible when your operations are built on a toxic foundation that a prospective buyer will easily spot during due diligence. This kind of cultural integrity is a key factor in [why buyers pay more for EOS-run businesses](/qa/why-buyers-pay-more-for-eos-run-businesses).

Related questions

• [One of our top-performing salespeople has been with us for eight years, but they consistently violate our Core Values. Do we keep them for the revenue or fire them to protect the culture?](/qa/handling-top-performers-who-violate-core-values)
• [How do we handle a key department head who refuses to participate in offsite vulnerability or team-building exercises, claiming it is a waste of time?](/qa/handling-leader-resisting-offsite-vulnerability)
• [My leadership team seems more concerned with protecting their departments and checking off boxes than looking at the big picture of the business. How do we shift their mindset to enterprise-first?](/qa/shifting-leadership-mindset-to-enterprise-first)
• [My COO is an incredibly loyal execution machine who has been with me for ten years, but they lack the strategic capability to build the next layer of management. How do I resolve this without firing them?](/qa/loyalty-versus-capability-leadership-team)