Why good intentions can put the wrong people in the wrong roles

People are the engine of any business. Systems help and tools speed things up, but it is still people who answer the phone, close the deal, manage clients and step in when things go awry. Even now with more tech and more automation, firms still rise and fall on the strength of the people inside them. What is most important however is how carefully those people are placed into the roles that matter.

One of the hardest calls any owner or director faces is deciding who should be promoted. Loyalty counts. Long service counts. Trust counts. The issue is that none of those things guarantees that a person will be suitable for a more senior role. A strong performer in one role can struggle in another. The problem appears when promotion happens merely because someone has been at the company a long time.

I have seen this many times. A role needs filling and the instinct is to place someone has been with the firm for years into that role  – mainly because they know everyone by name and have always been reliable.  It feels fairer and easier than looking elsewhere.  Problem is that six months later the same person is stressed, the team is confused and results are poor. No one wins. The individual feels exposed and the firm carries the cost.

The deeper issue is not promotion itself. It is the reluctance to have honest talks before decisions are made. Many leaders would rather avoid discomfort than sit down and explain why a role might not be the right fit for a certain person. That silence often leads to a bigger issue later. A robust conversation early on saves far more pain than a promotion that sets someone up to fail.

One thing you can do is separate the person from the role. You can value someone, enjoy working with them and still recognise that a certain position is beyond their current skills.

I used to begin annual reviews saying that we were there to talk about business performance, not personal worth. I liked most of the people I worked with but liking someone was never the same as looking at how they had met the goals we had agreed on twelve months earlier. That clarity made the rest of the discussion more useful.

The second part of the equation is goal setting. Many firms skip this step or keep it vague. Then review time arrives and the meeting turns awkward. Without clear targets, everything becomes opinion. With clear targets, both sides know what was agreed and what has or has not been achieved. It turns a personal moment into a business one.

When someone is recruited from another company, this obviously brings its own risks. But at the very least, it makes the senior team slightly more objective. Similarly, internal promotion can be brilliant when it is earned and right for the new role. A firm that gets this balance right keeps strong people in roles where they can thrive and brings in new leaders when needed.

When leaders are honest, set clear goals and choose people that are right for specific roles, the whole firm benefits. The team gains trust and direction and the business gains stability and strength.

If you feel your business might need a push in the right direction or an objective view on people and roles, please get in touch for a free chat about how we might help.  My email address is david.turner@tinderboxbd.com

David Turner

MD Tinderbox and Director of The Growth Experts