9. Process design and improvement Take your list, starting at the top, and brainstorm your way down, point by point. For example, how would “Goal Setting and Achievement” work if the VP Sales disappeared tomorrow and wasn’t replaced? If you get stuck or feel like you want to cheat and pretend only one person can be the owner of that point, remember what Charles de Gaulle said: “The graveyards are full of indispensable men.” As you finish going through the list, a vision will shape as to how the team can self-manage itself. Don’t try to implement every point on your list at once. Select a few (two or three) of the points that are the most important and easiest to implement, before moving on to the other points. Build some momentum with initial successes. What’s In It For The VP Sales (Or Any Manager)? If you start giving away all the responsibilities and power of a manager, won’t they feel threatened that you won’t need them? No! The more a sales team can manage itself, the more the VP Sales can focus on developing the “important, not urgent” aspects of the team, such as talent, culture and vision, rather than fighting fires or spending time on daily, “unimportant but urgent” tasks. Even better, by freeing up their own time and energy, the VP Sales (and other executives) can take on more of your (the CEO’s) responsibilities, and this allows you freedom and energy for even bigger things yourself! See how this works? You get what you give. Create more freedom and upside for your people, and you’ll get it in turn. When Distributing Responsibilities, Begin With Elimination As you work through your list of responsibilities and tasks, it’s a perfect opportunity to use the 80/20 rule to clear out non-essential tasks. Rather than