When Smart Leaders Disagree, Find the Variable
This Loom addresses how a CEO should handle a disagreement between the CFO and the head of sales about cutting spending during a bad quarter. Instead of picking a side, the CEO should identify the decision variable by asking what fact would make each person correct, such as cash runway, conversion rate, gross margin, customer acquisition cost, or the sales cycle and payment lag. The discussion contrasts scenarios where there are 16 weeks of cash left versus only six weeks, showing how timing can settle the argument even if both executives are smart. The key is to agree on the scoreboard before funding decisions and make disagreement useful without humiliating either side.
Episode notes
This Loom addresses how a CEO should handle a disagreement between the CFO and the head of sales about cutting spending during a bad quarter. Instead of picking a side, the CEO should identify the decision variable by asking what fact would make each person correct, such as cash runway, conversion rate, gross margin, customer acquisition cost, or the sales cycle and payment lag. The discussion contrasts scenarios where there are 16 weeks of cash left versus only six weeks, showing how timing can settle the argument even if both executives are smart. The key is to agree on the scoreboard before funding decisions and make disagreement useful without humiliating either side.