You’re Under-Hiring the Roles That Matter Most

Most agency owners think they have a growth problem.

They don’t.

They have a hiring problem.

More specifically, they’re under-hiring the two roles that determine whether the business scales or stalls:

Head of Client Services
Head of Operations

The Mistake

It’s a familiar pattern.

You promote someone internally.

An account manager becomes Head of Client Services.
A traffic manager becomes Head of Operations.

They’re smart. They’ve been loyal. They’ve shown potential.

It feels like the right thing to do.

But you haven’t hired for the role. You’ve hired for the person. And there’s a difference.

The Gap

These roles aren’t incremental steps up.

They’re step changes.

Head of Client Services isn’t about managing accounts. It’s about building strategic relationships that drive growth, retention, and long-term value.

Head of Operations isn’t about organising projects. It’s about building systems that allow the agency to scale without breaking.

Those are skills that come from experience.

Usually in bigger, more demanding environments.

Not from being “ready for the next step.”

The Cost

When you under-hire these roles, the impact isn’t immediate.

It shows up over time.

You become the escalation point for everything.
Decisions slow down.
Standards slip.
Growth plateaus.

You spend your time mentoring, fixing, and firefighting instead of actually leading the business.

And eventually, something gives.

Either the person leaves.

Or the business stalls.

The Shift

If you want to grow, you need to hire ahead of where you are.

Not behind it.

That means bringing in people who have already done the job at a higher level than your agency currently operates.

People who’ve seen scale.
Built systems.
Managed complexity.

Not because your business is already there.

But because you want it to be.

The Reality

You can go cheap on these roles.

And spend the next few years carrying the business yourself.

Or you can invest properly.

And build a structure that carries the business for you.

Most agencies don’t fail because of a lack of opportunity.

They stall because they don’t have the people to take them further.

The question is simple:

Are you building for where you are… or where you want to go?

Want to chat about it? Email me on Janusz@gyda.co