As SMBs grow, “accountability” often becomes the complaint.
It’s rarely a people problem.
It’s usually an architecture problem.Here’s the pattern I see:
Strategy exists. Execution exists. Coordination is missing.
So the company stays busy, occasionally strategic, and reliably surprised.
The Triangle in PracticeStrategy → Coordination → Execution
Strategy is the decisions you actually operate by (priorities, trade-offs, a few metrics that define “on track”).
Execution is the work: selling, delivering, hiring, spending, collecting.
Coordination is the missing layer in many SMB finance functions and it’s not “more meetings.”
Coordination is the system that turns intent into repeatable action:·
clear owners for margin, cash, and spend·
definitions that don’t change week to week·
a review cadence (weekly signals, monthly truths)·
escalation rules when numbers move·
one source of truth and a known “clock speed” for the data
Without coordination, accountability becomes personal.
With coordination, accountability becomes structural.The goal isn’t tighter control.
It’s reliable information flow that makes decisions faster and surprises rarer.
Accountability isn’t something you can simply demand as complexity rises.It’s something you design.
