A seven-rung scale for how much ownership a team member, agency or client contact takes on a decision, from waiting for instructions to acting and reporting on an ongoing basis. Similar to David Marquet's Ladder of Leadership from Turn the Ship Around! Level 1: 'Tell me what to do.' Level 2: 'I think...' Level 3: 'I recommend...' Level 4: 'Request permission to...' Level 5: 'I intend to...' Level 6: 'I just did...' Level 7: 'I've been doing...'
When delegating marketing work, onboarding team members or agencies, setting approval workflows, and deciding which decisions need sign-off and which do not.
A new coordinator at Level 2 sharing ideas before acting; an agency at Level 5 on bid changes ('I intend to raise the budget Friday unless you object'); a senior manager at Level 7 reporting routine optimizations in a weekly recap.
A clean way to set expectations between teams, clients and agencies. Flagged when everyone is stuck at Level 1 waiting for approval, or at Level 7 on decisions that need oversight.
