Our customer escalation and online reviews seat has become a toxic hot potato. None of our account managers want to own it because they hate dealing with angry clients. How do we structurally solve this unwanted seat issue on our Accountability Chart?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

When a seat becomes a hot potato that everyone avoids, it is usually because the roles are poorly defined or the accountability is shared. In an EOS® company, shared accountability means nobody is accountable. You must have one name, and only one name, in every seat.

To solve this, start by stripping the emotion out of the seat. Do not just force it onto an existing account manager who clearly does not Want It. That will only lead to disengagement and poor customer service. Instead, put the seat on the table during your leadership team meeting and dissect the roles.

Break the escalation seat down into three clear, objective roles on the Accountability Chart. For example, role one is rapid response and triaging, role two is root-cause analysis, and role three is customer retention. Often, when people see the specific roles written down, they realize the job is not as intimidating as they thought.

If your current team still lacks the capacity or desire to own this seat, you have two structural options. You can combine these roles into an existing operations seat that naturally handles high-stress problem solving, or you can hire a specialized external resource or customer experience specialist specifically for this seat.

If you choose to keep it internal, consider adding a weekly scorecard measurable to the seat that rewards successful resolution. When a difficult seat has clear boundaries, a defined process, and measurable success, it stops being a toxic chore and becomes a manageable professional discipline.