5 Keys to
Structure for Growth
Key 4: Design with the desire to go deep.
Key Principles
Go deep, not wide. Add levels of leadership deeper into the organizational structure rather than adding new departments or areas that stretch your leadership too thin.
Organizations naturally tend to progress toward complexity as they grow. Fighting for simplicity is crucial in maintaining momentum.
Development is the first casualty of going wide. When leaders have too many people or areas to directly manage, they have no margin to develop others.
Define each level of leadership (e.g. team lead, coordinator, director) and keep it consistent across all areas. Then define each lane of leadership (e.g. parking, youth, toddler room) to give every leader clarity on their role.
Questions to Ask
Are there any areas in our structure where leaders have too many direct reports or too many areas of direct oversight?
What are the highest priority areas where we can plan to add an additional leader to go deeper in our structure?
Are our levels and lanes of leadership abundantly clear to our people? How do we know?
