Skills and Wills: Aligning People, Roles, and Values

Skills and Wills...
It’s a simple but powerful way to think about how we assign people to roles, hold them accountable, and ensure they’re aligned with the core values that drive our organization.
When you look at your accountability chart, that clear visual of who owns what results, every box should be filled by someone who has both the capability to do the job and the desire to do it well.
The Skills and Wills Matrix
At its core, “skills” are the competencies, experience, and technical abilities a person brings to the table.
“Wills” are their motivation, attitude, and alignment with the organization’s values.
If you plot them against each other, you get four quadrants:
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High Skill / High Will – These are your stars. They can do the job and want to do it.
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High Skill / Low Will – Capable but disengaged or misaligned with core values. A potential cultural risk.
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Low Skill / High Will – Hungry and motivated but need training. With investment, they can move up fast.
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Low Skill / Low Will – Both a performance and cultural problem.
Connecting Skills and Wills to the Accountability Chart
When building or refining your accountability chart, you’re not just matching job titles to people. You’re matching results to humans who can deliver them.
For every seat, ask these questions:
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Skill: “Can they do the job at the level required? Can they "own" these roles?”
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Will: “Do they want it, and are they aligned with our values?”
A “yes” to both means you’ve got the right person in the right seat. A “no” to either means there’s a coaching, training, or replacement decision ahead.
Core Values as the Will Test
Core values are your built-in litmus test for “wills.”
If someone consistently acts outside your core values, they might still be able to do the work, but they’ll eventually erode your culture.
Example: If one of your values is “Own It” and a person constantly blames others for mistakes, that’s a will problem. No amount of skill can make up for the wrong cultural fit.
Why This Matters
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Performance: High skill + high will equals consistent, predictable results.
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Culture: Core values alignment builds trust, reduces drama, and fosters team health.
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Clarity: Leaders make better people decisions faster when they have a clear framework.
Without assessing skills and wills, it’s easy to promote or retain the wrong people...which slows growth, frustrates the team, and damages culture (I've even seen it scare away the best people in an organization).
Bottom line: Your accountability chart is more than an org chart. It’s a living tool to ensure every role is filled by someone who both can do the job and wants to do the job...in alignment with who you are as a company. When you measure and manage both skills and wills (or performance and culture), you build a team that delivers results and strengthens your culture at the same time.
Ryan Giles
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