Julia Langkraehr’s Blog

Your business: structure first, people second

EOS accountability chart

People are your most valuable business resource.

You can have the best idea, product or service; you can be well funded, have great cash flow and be positioned in the right market, however if you don’t have the right people, you’re won’t make your vision come true.

Your people need to match your core values, have the right skills and have the right attitude.

In order to make sure you’ve got the right people in the right seats, you need the right structure for your business.

A fundamental tool of The Entrepreneurial Operating System™ (EOS) is have an Accountability Chart.

Three major functions

We believe there are three  major functions which make every business work:

1. Sales and marketing (how you sell and market the product)

2. Operations (manufacturing and delivering your product or service)

3. Finance (which also includes administration and IT)

On the Accountability Chart there is a box for each of these three functions.

The Integrator

Above the three major functions there is an Integrator.

He or she is the person who seamlessly makes the three core functions work together, removing obstacles and solving problems so that the whole company can function and thrive.

The Integrator is responsible for the bottom line, profit and loss and making sure the company is moving forward and eliminating any problems.

The Visionary

About half the time, there is also a second role, the Visionary, positioned in a box above the Integrator.

The Visionary is the spirited entrepreneur who comes up with all the great ideas, is in charge of the big relationships and is the spokesperson for the business. They are responsible for the culture, the passion, the vision.

Sometimes the Visionary is not a strong “completer finisher” and they are typically not good at executing and implementing over a long period of time.

If you have a strong Visionary, as your business grows, you will need to put in place an Integrator to seamlessly integrate all the working parts and execute on the company’s vision.

These five core roles make up your leadership team.

Responsibilities

Each of the five roles has five things they must be responsible for delivering.

This allows each role to understand exactly where they fit in the organisation, their key responsibilities, and what they must get done in order to be successful.

Even if you are a solo entrepreneur, you still need an accountability chart.

In the beginning you wear all the hats and execute on all the roles. As you grow, it gives you a clear picture of who you need, when, in the organisation.

These roles do not have to be a full time employee. They can be outsourced to specialists, so your business receives quality and expertise without the full-time positions.

The beauty of the EOS  Accountability Chart is that as your business grows,  it simply grows with it.

Having the right structure in place,  will enable you to find the right people and place them in the right seats.

The Entrepreneurial Operating System is framework for running your business which enables it to reach its full potential.
To find out more about EOS, what your accountability chart should look like, and learn about the other EOS tools, contact us to arrange a complementary 90 minute introduction.