The Doer-to-Leader Ratio
ISSUE 03 | October 2026
When the Role Changes, the Ratio Must Change
Think about the leaders you've promoted because they were exceptional at getting things done.
Now ask yourself:
How many of them are still spending too much time doing the work that made them successful, instead of leading at the level their role requires today?
I see this frequently in my work with executives.
The person was a highly productive individual contributor. They were dependable, knowledgeable and effective. They solved problems. They got things done.
So they were promoted.
Their title changed. Their responsibilities changed. Expectations changed.
But did anyone intentionally change their definition of success?
That's where problems often begin.
EVERY LEADERSHIP ROLE HAS A RATIO
Most leadership roles require some combination of doing and leading. There is no universally correct ratio.
The question is whether the Doer-to-Leader Ratio is appropriate for what the role requires today, and whether it has been determined intentionally.
Roles change in two ways.
Sometimes a person moves into a new role.
Other times, the person stays in the same position while the role changes around them. The organization grows. The team expands. Complexity increases. Expectations change.
Either way, the ratio that worked before may not be the ratio the role requires today.
THE GRAVITATIONAL PULL BACK TOWARD DOING
Changing the ratio isn't always easy.
Doing is familiar. It's comfortable. And the leader is usually good at it. Their ability to do the work may be exactly what earned them the opportunity to lead in the first place.
Leadership introduces more uncertainty. Delegating. Developing people. Setting expectations. Holding people accountable. Allowing someone else to solve a problem differently.
So there's a natural gravitational pull back toward doing.
And that's what makes the problem difficult to recognize:
Getting pulled back into doing can look productive.
The problem gets solved. The customer gets taken care of. The deadline gets met.
But over time, the leader can become a bottleneck. People remain dependent on them. Other leaders don't develop. And higher-value leadership responsibilities receive less attention.
The problem isn't that leaders are still doing.
The problem is when nobody has intentionally determined how much they should be doing.
TAKE IT TO YOUR TEAM
Pick a few key leadership roles in your organization and ask:
1. What is the appropriate Doer-to-Leader Ratio for this role today?
Not what worked two years ago. Not what made the person successful before they were promoted.
What does the role require today?
Then ask:
2. Is this leader actually operating at that ratio?
If the answer is no, don't stop with, "You need to delegate more."
Get intentional.
Ask yourself:
Have we been clear with this leader about what the role requires today?
Then consider:
What should this leader continue doing?
What should they stop doing?
What needs to be transferred to someone else?
What leadership responsibilities aren't getting enough attention because they're still spending too much time doing?
The gravitational pull toward doing doesn't disappear when someone becomes a leader.
That's why the Doer-to-Leader Ratio has to be intentional.
The role changed. Did the leader's ratio change with it?
