"How Delegation and Trusting My Team Saved My Business with Jeremy Harrison "
As leaders, business owners, and entrepreneurs, many of us wear multiple hats, manage hectic schedules, and often find it challenging to let go of control. Jeremy Harrison, the founder of the marketing agency Spire and a professional EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) implementer, joined Kristy Yoder on the Master Delegator podcast to share his thoughts on delegation, leadership challenges, and his journey as a business owner. His insights, drawn from almost two decades of entrepreneurial experience, offer valuable lessons on growing businesses successfully with delegation at their core.
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1. Facing Challenges As Opportunities for Growth
As Jeremy shared, starting and growing a business often involves grappling with challenges from economic downturns like the Great Recession to personal hardships like the loss of a loved one. Jeremy started Spire in 2006, not long before the 2008 financial crisis struck. Overnight, he faced immense pressure, challenges like making payroll, and pivoting strategies to adapt to the times. Reflecting on this experience, Jeremy noted that learning to weather challenges prepared him to grow on the other side.
One of his hardest moments was in late 2023 when two major challenges struck his business simultaneously. First, Spire lost its largest client a client whose growth journey had fueled significant revenues for the agency. Just weeks later, Jeremy endured a personal tragedy: the accidental death of his son from a fentanyl-related overdose. When combined, these experiences left him unable to focus on his business.
However, prior delegation efforts saved his company during that period. Delegating operational responsibilities to trusted team members allowed Spire to survive without Jeremy being at the helm for an extended time. His vulnerability in sharing these experiences emphasizes why building a capable and trusted team is so critical—not just for times of growth but also for unforeseen challenges.
2. The Importance of Letting Go
Throughout his journey, Jeremy expressed that letting go as a leader was a recurring and challenging theme. Initially, like many entrepreneurs, he struggled with the idea of turning over aspects of his business to others. However, the tipping point came when he realized that this resistance to letting go was hindering his company’s growth.
Jeremy described finding inspiration in the book Traction by Gino Wickman, which introduced him to the principles of EOS. He later became an EOS implementer himself, teaching the system to other businesses. The hallmark of this process? Learning to “delegate and elevate” by trusting others to handle the day-to-day so that you can focus on higher-value tasks.
Jeremy’s story serves as a reminder that delegation isn’t a sign of weakness or laziness. Rather, it’s a step toward sustainable business growth and personal capacity-building. Letting go of the belief that only you can handle certain tasks is the first step toward scaling up.
3. Empowering Your Team Can Save Your Business
Jeremy’s transition toward embracing delegation was rooted in building trust with his team. Inviting others into leadership roles allowed them to shine in areas where he admitted his own weaknesses. Jessica, Spire's general manager, took on day-to-day operational management responsibilities, proving to be a far better manager than he ever considered himself to be. Similarly, delegating finances and sales/marketing leadership to other team members paid dividends.
This collaborative team dynamic proved critical during Jeremy’s personal loss. The systems he had established through EOS empowered his team to make decisive actions, safeguard the company, and keep it thriving all without his direct involvement.
Jeremy pointed out that delegation also has an important psychological value: your team feels empowered and engaged when they’re entrusted with significant roles. If you guard all responsibilities solely under your control, employees may grow discontent or feel undervalued. Instead, delegation shows trust and allows team members to thrive in their strengths.
4. Recognizing the Power of EOS
EOS a leadership and business management system outlined in Wickman’s Traction became the framework for Jeremy’s transformation as a business leader. Implementing EOS within Spire in 2019–2020 led to a stark before-and-after shift in operations. To summarize its power, Jeremy explained that EOS focuses on three pillars:
Vision
: Aligning the entire organization toward a shared understanding of where they are going and how they’ll get there.
Traction
: Infusing discipline and accountability into actions, ensuring that steps toward the vision get executed efficiently.
Healthy Team Dynamics
: Creating a cohesive, open, and collaborative team environment where individuals genuinely enjoy working together.
One of Jeremy’s favorite EOS concepts is the analogy of “letting go of the vine.” Clinging tightly to every operational responsibility as an entrepreneur can stifle growth; only by trusting your team to help can you move forward. Jeremy believed this insight gave him the capacity to finally let go of even the most significant business areas under his purview, such as Spire’s vision and operational systems.
Even for listeners who don’t adopt the full EOS system, Jeremy suggested picking up actionable strategies from Traction to gain clarity and structure in any business setting.
5. The Power of Core Values to Build Culture
Leadership for Jeremy went beyond executing tasks or financial goals it extended to building a workplace culture rooted in clear values. Identifying Spire’s core values helped the company align talent with long-term goals. As Jeremy mentioned, core values go far beyond technical skills or resumes; they encompass employees’ alignment with vision, mission, and day-to-day communication dynamics.
Once Spire established its core values, Jeremy and the leadership team used them as a benchmark. Employees who didn’t embody these values were offered guidance to improve but some transitions were inevitable where misalignment persisted. With time, this approach built a team whose individual strengths contributed to the healthy culture Jeremy now relies on.
This observation prompted a fascinating reflection: even fast-growing teams possess “hidden superpowers” among their ranks. Leaders, therefore, need to uncover and leverage employees’ unique abilities. Doing so allows individuals to thrive within roles aligned with their strengths, which in turn creates a ripple effect of positivity and productivity throughout the company.
6. Integrating Practical Delegation Techniques
The transition to a successful culture of delegation involves incremental steps, and Jeremy provided some helpful guidelines:
Map Out Priorities: Organize your tasks based on their value to the business. Delegate low-value but time-consuming ones to team members, allowing you to focus on high-impact activities that energize you.
Start Small: Jeremy recommended starting with tasks or projects, gradually enlarging the scope of responsibilities entrusted to your team. This builds mutual trust and competence in delegation.
Set Clear Outcomes: The most effective delegation is outcome-driven. With time, this means entrusting others to define goals, projects, and pathways without requiring constant managerial input.
These methods align well with the EOS principle of “delegate and elevate.” This not only alleviates stress but also enables deliberate alignment with your evolving business vision.
7. Proactive Leadership Through Communication
Even after “letting go,” Jeremy emphasized that proactive leadership included regular check-ins and structured communication. At Spire, he cultivated a rhythm of interactions supported by EOS principles:
Annual Vision Planning: At the start of each year, leadership gathers to define goals, priorities, and individual contributions aligned with broader company vision.
Quarterly Accountability: Regular updates—what Spire calls their "State of Spire"—are shared to assess progress and recalibrate goals.
Weekly Tactical Meetings: Teams connect on short-term operational needs, ensuring accountability, even for granular tasks.
This approach allows Jeremy and his leadership team to maintain cultural coherence, even while individuals are independently responsible for delegated roles.
8. Leadership as Empowerment, Not Control
The ultimate essence of Jeremy’s narrative lies in redefining leadership: moving away from
dominance over daily tasks to empowering others. Delegation for him wasn’t about abandoning responsibilities but rather positioning himself and his team to work on what they do best.
Through letting go of perfectionism, prioritizing alignment on vision, and trusting others’ abilities beyond his own, Jeremy made the most significant contribution a leader can make: inspiring others to lead alongside him.
Learn more about Jeremy Harrison:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremyrharrison/
