We are struggling to define the right seats on our Accountability Chart because we keep designing seats around the personalities of our current leadership team. How can we use objective assessments like the Kolbe Index or Predictive Index to separate the functional needs of the seat from the people currently sitting in them?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

To build a scalable business, you must design the Accountability Chart for the organization first, completely ignoring the people you currently have. This means creating seats based purely on the functions required to hit your 3-Year Picture™ and 10-Year Target™. Once the structure is locked, you can use assessments like the Kolbe Index and Predictive Index to evaluate if your current team members are a fit. The Kolbe Index measures conation, which is how a person instinctively approaches problem-solving and takes action. For example, a seat that requires high operational structure and building step-by-step processes needs someone with a high Follow Thru score. If you put a natural Quickstart into that seat, they will experience conative stress and struggle to deliver results, regardless of their intelligence or experience. Similarly, the Predictive Index helps you understand an individual's behavioral drives and cognitive capacity, ensuring their natural motivations align with the daily demands of the role. Compare these objective profiles against the GWC™ framework. Does the person truly get, want, and have the capacity for the seat? By using data-driven assessments rather than personal relationships or legacy titles, you can make objective decisions about who belongs in which seat, placing the right people in the right seats to drive your growth.