The Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) is a management system made up of six different components that when combined with discipline and accountability, can help your business execute better towards your goals. Traction is one of those six components, focusing on the structure and process of running your business.

Should your company run Traction? The short answer is yes, but it also depends on a number of factors you should consider first. But I can say with confidence that a business that is disciplined at running Traction, will see positive results.

In this article, I am going to touch on what Traction is and who it is best suited for, and walk through the pros and cons of implementing it in your organization.

NOTE: I am not a certified EOS Traction implementer, nor am I associated with EOS Traction through any kind of affiliate program. I am, however, very experienced using the EOS Traction system, having been actively involved in the Traction methodology for almost five years. I also have read all of the books in the Taction Library, including Rocket Fuel, Get a Grip, and How to Be a Great Boss. I believe EOS Traction is a great process model that has a place in many businesses, but also want to be critical of the methodology where appropriate and offer an opinion of someone with many years of experience using the system.

A Summary of EOS Traction

I often tell others to think of Traction as a management process, or a way to organize your business, made up of six components you focus on within a cadence of events (meetings) and Rocks (goals) over the course of a year. It sounds more complicated than it is, trust me. In short, Traction gives you the tools to set goals, metrics, and a set of specific meetings to help keep you focused. The focus (plus accountability, which is a pillar theme in Traction) is what ultimately drives the growth of your business.

I keep mentioning the six components of EOS Traction. Here is what they are:

Vision

This component is all about getting everyone on the same page in regards to where the organization is going. Everyone has a clear vision of the road ahead. Sounds simple enough, but it is actually very difficult if you do it correctly. The chances are high, especially as your company gets bigger, there are pockets of employees who do not see or understand the vision.

People

This component is all about making sure you have the right people and they are in the right seats - both important elements if you want to grow and scale. This is where the Accountability Chart in Traction comes into play and is important to have documented and clear. Traction also gives you a number of tools to help with the People component, such as the “People Analyzer”.

Data

This is where my heart is. I always repeat the saying, “In God We Trust… All Others Bring Data!”. Traction forces you to track all of the important data in your business, but then most importantly, forces you to review it each and every week. KPIs that are not performing up to par are then added to an “Issues List”, to get leadership members to talk about how to fix the results. Instead of hiding data until the end of the year, Traction brings it to light every week. No surprises at the end of the quarter!

Issues

Issues are the items that are getting in the way of achieving your goals. And like the Data component, Traction forces you to confront issues head-on each week. In all of the Traction prescribed meetings, there is an “IDS” part of the agenda where issues get discussed and solved. IDS is, arguably, the most difficult component for companies who run Traction.

Process

This component is all about how you get work done. You can’t just wing processes and expect growth. Processes should be documented, examined, and improved on a regular basis. Traction provides tools to help you organize and manage your processes.

Traction

The last and final component is the one that brings everything together. Traction is about bringing focus, accountability, and discipline to your organization. To do this, Traction has certain protocols in terms of documentation (Scorecard, Rocks, V/TO, etc.) and meetings (Annual Planning, Quarterly Check-ins, etc.) that you follow to keep everyone connected and on track towards the vision.

These six components make up the EOS model. According to EOS Traction, all six of these must be front-and-center to achieve growth. There is no “half-assing” it. Either you are doing Traction, or you are not.

What companies should use EOS Traction?

Traction is not for every company. In my experience and research, there are a number of factors that come into play to determine if it is a good fit for your organization. I have highlighted some of the biggest factors you should consider.

Start-ups and Small Businesses Will Benefit the Most from EOS Traction

EOS Traction is ideal for start-ups and small businesses, who often can be more flexible in pivoting quickly and facilitate internal communications faster and more effectively. While this is not a hard-and-fast rule with EOS Traction, I would say companies with up to 200 employees will probably see the most benefit.

That being said, there may be opportunities within departments at larger companies. If I was overseeing a marketing department within a company of more than 1,000 employees, and the department was starting to lose ground in its operations, a tool like Traction might be just the answer. I would just scale down Traction’s methods to the department level. But it could work, because again, Traction is about focus, discipline, and accountability, and what team couldn’t benefit from that?

Companies That Have Hit a Plateau

Traction is a perfect option for a company that is struggling or has hit a plateau in their growth. The reason most companies start to lose momentum is because they lose focus on the core goals and start to chase squirrels. Traction’s structure and focus on discipline can help reel in companies (and its people). When you first sign up with a Traction implementer, you will start with a two-day session called “Focus Days”. This will immediately force your organization to make some decisions about its structure, starting at the top, and get you on a cadence that promotes goals (rocks), accountability, and deadlines. This alone can help change the tone of the organization and reverse the downward or stalled course.

Companies That Can Afford the Implementer Fees

There are two ways to run EOS Traction…

1. Buy the book and attempt to implement it on your own

2. Hire a Traction implementer

EOS will tell you to hire the implementer (obviously), but I also have to say that is probably the best route. First of all, the certified Traction implementer will have all the tools and advice you would need to be successful at Traction. Secondly, paying the implementer fee will help you stay accountable.

Traction implementers make a pretty penny. You can expect to pay anywhere between $20,000-$50,000 a year for a certified EOS Traction implementer. I would say the majority will run between $20,000-$35,000, but the fee depends on how experienced they are with Traction.

These Traction implementers are independent business owners who pay a license fee to EOS annually, which the last time I checked was $50,000 a year, but that was a couple of years ago, so it probably has gone up since then as Traction has grown in popularity. 

Do you have an individual who could be your “Integrator”?

There are two main roles you need to have on your leadership team if you want to run Traction. One is the Visionary, which in most cases will be your Founder and/or CEO.  The second role, however, is arguably the most important and that is the Integrator.  The Integrator is responsible for keeping the individual departments in sync and working together towards the completion of rocks and ultimately the vision. The Integrator needs to be a good communicator who can connect dots across the organization. The most common person to fill this role may be your COO or your highest ranking operations person, but it needs to be someone on the leadership team.

Traction is NOT a Strategic Planning System

If there is only one thing you take away from this article, my hope is it will be this…

EOS Traction is not a system to help you with strategic planning.

Running Traction will definitely help you execute your strategic plan, but it will not help you develop one. If you are looking for a resource to help with building a strategic planning process, I recommend starting by reading Playing to Win. I see many different ways to bring both the Play to Win model and EOS Traction together.

The Pros and Cons of Implementing EOS Traction

As I mentioned earlier, at the end of the day, I believe implementing Traction can be a good thing for most businesses. If you need to turn things around, need more focus and discipline, and you have the cash available to cover the fee of an implementer, then I say go for it.  However, I still wanted to provide you with my pros and cons of getting up and running with Traction.

Pros of Running Traction

• Brings focus to your business, forcing you to only work on the things that are going to move your business forward

• Brings accountability to forefront, which is usually an element that is missing in a company that is struggling

• Things like KPIs and rocks become transparent across the business, bringing awareness to everyone

• Traction promotes open, honest conversations on the leadership team level. No bullshit, and disagreements, conflict, and differing opinions are welcome, as long as everyone leaves the meeting on the same page and going in the same direction

• Many of the tools Traction uses are helpful

• The rituals and ceremonies bring consistency in an otherwise chaotic business

Cons of Running Traction

• The cost of having an implementer is steep, running between $20,000-$50,000 per year

• Forces companies to rethink their leadership group who will be responsible for conducting many of the Traction duties

• While the structure of Traction looks simple, it actually is more complex than it looks

Looking for Advice on Implementing EOS Traction?

I can help! If you are looking for an opinion on how Traction might work for your company, please feel free to reach out to me and I can help you weigh your options. Drop me a note and let’s talk!