Operate
I know which is which.
One of the ways a new Marketing Director damages trust fastest is by overstepping authority early — making decisions that should go to the Level 10 or to Marc without surfacing them first. The opposite failure is equally damaging: bringing every tactical decision to Marc and creating unnecessary overhead for firm leadership.
The $2,500 autonomous threshold is clear. The Level 10 approval requirements are clear. Marc’s final authority list is clear. I’m not going to need someone to remind me which category a decision falls into. Here’s how I understand each tier before I walk in the door.
“The $2,500 threshold isn’t a ceiling on my thinking — it’s a ceiling on my spending without alignment. I can think as strategically as I want about anything. But I don’t move budget above that threshold without surfacing it at the Level 10 first. That discipline builds the trust that eventually earns more autonomy.”
how I run Tuesday morning.
How I lead them.
Two direct reports. One key peer. One fractional strategic partner. That’s the immediate operating team. My philosophy on all of them is the same: clarity on priorities beats frequency of direction. I don’t manage by standing over people. I set the quarterly objectives clearly, build the content calendar 60 days ahead, run the weekly check-in efficiently, and stay available when something breaks.
The Marketing Assistant already knows how to execute. The BDM already has a relationship focus. What they need from a new Director isn’t a reorganization or a new framework. It’s a clear priority stack and someone who removes blockers instead of creating them. That’s the leadership posture I bring from Day One.
I move.
Each vendor relationship has specific consultation requirements — the decisions I can make independently versus the ones that require a conversation before implementation. These aren’t bureaucratic gates. They’re the boundaries that protect the vendor relationships from unnecessary disruption and protect the firm from decisions made without enough context.
My process is the same for every vendor consultation: prepare the recommendation with data and rationale, surface it at the Level 10, get alignment, then coordinate with the vendor. Nothing moves to a vendor until the internal decision is made. No vendor hears about a strategic change from me before Marc does.
When he sees it.
Reporting transparency is the foundation of operational trust. Marc should never have to ask how marketing is performing — the data should arrive before the question does. Three reporting cadences: weekly scorecard at the Level 10, monthly dashboard with full ROI analysis, and quarterly strategic review with budget allocation recommendations. Each one is built to answer the question Marc cares about most: are we on track to hit 180–288 cases per month by December 2026?
“I’ve operated inside EOS before. The Level 10 format isn’t new to me — it’s how I prefer to work. Data before opinions. Flag pivots before making them. Bring a recommendation, not a question. The Tuesday scorecard that I’d present to Marc every week is already built in the Scorecard section of this presentation. That’s not a prototype. That’s the actual format.”