M19BuildPeople· Module 2
Designing Roles
Job titles exist, but no one can say what each role is accountable for delivering.
- Stabilise
- Fix
- Grow
- People
- ~5 min · Template
The business problem
Job descriptions, where they exist, list tasks rather than results. People fill their days with activity but don't know what success in the role looks like, and managers can't hold anyone accountable for an outcome that was never defined.
Why it matters
Clear roles make hiring, onboarding, delegation and performance conversations far easier. They also reveal when a role is really two jobs or no job at all.
What you will learn
- Write roles as outcomes, responsibilities, authority and measures
- Distinguish a role from the person currently in it
- Spot overloaded, overlapping and empty roles
- Use role cards for hiring and performance
Core questions
- What result is this role accountable for?
- What may the role-holder decide without asking?
- How will we know the role is being done well?
- Is this one role, or two combined by history?
Work through the module
CaseWhat is happening?
Private school, 45 staff · Illustrative teaching case
A school's administrator handles admissions, fees collection, parent communication and supplies. Fee arrears grow and parents complain about slow replies. Writing role cards shows that fee collection has no measure and no authority — the administrator cannot enforce payment terms without the director. The role is split and fee collection gets clear rules.
DecisionWhat does the leader need to decide?
Ask the administrator to work harder, or redesign the role and its authority?
FrameworkHow should they think about the problem?
The role card
Purpose (why the role exists), outcomes (results it owns), responsibilities (recurring work), authority (decisions it can make and limits), measures (how performance is judged) and relationships (who it works with).
ToolWhat can they use?
Role card templateTemplate
- Purpose in one sentence
- 3–5 outcomes the role owns
- Key recurring responsibilities
- Authority and limits
- 2–4 measures
ApplicationHow does it apply to their business?
Apply it to your own business:
- Write role cards for your management team
- Ask each person to write their own, then compare
- Resolve the differences
ImplementationWhat changes?
What should change in the business:
- Agree and publish role cards
- Use them in hiring and onboarding
- Review them when the business or structure changes
ReviewDid it work?
How to tell whether the change worked:
- Can each manager state their outcomes and measures?
- Have disputes over who does what reduced?
- Are performance conversations based on the role card?
After this module you should be able to decide
Ask the administrator to work harder, or redesign the role and its authority?
And leave with: Role cards with outcomes, responsibilities and authority.
Sequence · People
Related modules
Part of these learning paths