--- title: Asymmetric Team Role Definition type: article created: '2026-04-05' updated: '2026-04-05' source_docs: - raw/2025-10-10-client-health-pulse-check-internal-93456393.md tags: - asymmetric - role-definition - operations - account-management - mark-hope - clickup - sops layer: 2 client_source: null industry_context: null transferable: true --- # Asymmetric Team Role Definition ## Overview During the 2026 strategy session, Mark Hope articulated a deliberate restructuring of how roles and responsibilities are distributed across the Asymmetric team. The core driver: Mark had been spending the majority of his day on execution-level tasks (HubSpot configuration, Salesforce work, email signatures, website edits), leaving no capacity for business development or strategy. With the company in a revenue squeeze after losing several clients, this needed to change immediately. The restructuring is not a formal org chart change so much as a clarified **frame** for each role — defining a floor below which no one should operate, and a center-of-frame focus that each person should protect. --- ## Mark Hope — Business Development & Strategy Only Mark's role is explicitly narrowed to two functions: 1. **Business Development** — new client acquisition, outreach, proposals, and closing 2. **Strategy** — defining the *why* and *what* for client engagements; account managers then own the *how* > "My role needs to be two things: business development and strategy. And that's it. If you want something else, call somebody else." Any task outside these two domains — CRM configuration, ad campaign setup, email signatures, website edits — is below Mark's floor and should be delegated immediately. The expectation is: Mark teaches a task once, then never does it again. **Implication for the team:** Account managers and delivery staff should not route execution tasks to Mark. They should identify who owns the task and route it there directly. --- ## Account Managers — Client Relationships & Delivery Account managers (explicitly Melissa Cusumano and Karly Oykhman in context) are described as Mark's internal customers. Their responsibilities: - **Own the client relationship** — be the primary client-facing contact; manage calls, communications, and trust - **Translate strategy into delivery** — work with Mark to understand the *why* and *what*, then coordinate with the delivery team on the *how* - **Measure and report** — track whether work is achieving the intended outcomes; surface issues early - **Manage call efficiency** — avoid unnecessary calls; every client interaction should have a clear purpose > "You work with me to define the strategy, then you work with the rest of the team to deliver what's needed to achieve the strategy. In my mind, you're the most important people in the company." Account managers should be fluent enough in performance data to run their own analysis (e.g., using ChatGPT to analyze Google Ads exports) rather than depending on specialists for every insight. See [[wiki/knowledge/ai-tools/chatgpt-google-ads-analysis]] for the workflow Mark demonstrated. --- ## Gilbert — Performance Marketing Lead Gilbert has been elevated to lead all **performance marketing**, defined as any paid advertising: - Google Ads - Amazon Ads - Bing Ads - Meta (in progress / partial) Anup reports to Gilbert. Additional reports are anticipated. **Client-facing posture:** Gilbert is generally *not* client-facing. His role is to brief account managers before calls and provide analysis they can present. If a technical issue requires his direct presence on a call, that is acceptable, but the default is for account managers to own the client conversation. > "I prefer that you manage the client-facing stuff and that you can ask him — hey, I'm getting ready to have a call with Adavacare — and he briefs you." Account managers should include Gilbert on any call where paid advertising performance is a substantive topic. --- ## Isalia Ramirez — Operations & Documentation Isalia's focus area is internal operations infrastructure: - **SOPs** — document repeatable processes so work is consistent and transferable - **ClickUp** — ensure the project management system is being used correctly and consistently across the team - **Asset organization** — eliminate the "where's the logo?" problem; assets should be findable in under two minutes > "We've got to get our SOPs in place, we've got to get our ClickUp working the way we wanted to, we've got to get our databases working. We need to quit looking for stuff." This work is framed as a stabilization priority for Q4 before the 2026 growth push begins. --- ## Chris — Automations & CRM Chris's defined focus: - **Marketing automations** — building and maintaining automated workflows - **CRM management** — HubSpot and Salesforce configuration and maintenance (tasks Mark was previously absorbing) - **AI tooling** — potential role in client-facing AI applications Mark is building via APIs > "The things that we've got Chris focusing on are automations, which are valuable, and CRMs." --- ## Ben — Underutilized; Needs Focus Ben is identified as a capable team member who is not being fully utilized — not due to lack of effort, but lack of clear focus and assignment. - Has capacity to take on client-facing account management work with training - Should be given a defined scope rather than ad hoc tasks > "I think we're getting a fraction of what we should be getting out of Ben right now. It's not because of lack of effort. It's just because we haven't fully focused him." --- ## The "Frame" Model Mark introduced a mental model for role discipline called the **frame**: - **Floor** — the lowest-value work a person should ever touch. Nothing below the floor, ever. - **Center of frame** — the high-value focus area that should occupy the majority of a person's time. The goal is to raise everyone's floor over time. Junior staff, interns, or offshore resources (e.g., Mylene, Raphael) should absorb tasks that fall below the floor of senior team members. **Example:** An email signature request is below Mark's floor, below account managers' floors, and should go directly to a junior resource. --- ## Key Decisions - Mark's role is formally narrowed to business development and strategy; all execution tasks must be delegated - Gilbert is the single owner of all paid advertising performance; Anup reports to him - Account managers own client relationships end-to-end and are responsible for delivery coordination - Isalia owns SOPs and ClickUp infrastructure; this is a Q4 priority before 2026 growth begins - Ben needs a defined scope; account management training is a near-term option ## Action Items - [ ] Mark to stop routing execution tasks to himself; identify and train owners for recurring tasks (@Mark Hope) - [ ] Account managers to include Gilbert in pre-call briefings for any paid ads discussion (@Melissa Cusumano, @Karly Oykhman) - [ ] Isalia to audit ClickUp usage and identify gaps in SOP coverage (@Isalia Ramirez) - [ ] Define a focused scope for Ben, including potential account management training (@Mark Hope / @Melissa Cusumano) ## Related - [[wiki/clients/asymmetric/index]] - [[wiki/knowledge/agency-operations/asymmetric-2026-growth-strategy]] - [[wiki/knowledge/ai-tools/chatgpt-google-ads-analysis]]