Dumb ways to die: Five ways to kill the visionary and integrator relationship

If there is one relationship, within companies running on EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System®) that, if not done right, can destroy a business, it’s that of the visionary and integrator connection. Here are five dumb ways you can kill that relationship.

1.  Don’t hand over the keys

An integrator’s job is to get things done. As Mark Winters and Gino Wickman described in the book ‘Rocket Fuel’ – ‘Visionaries have groundbreaking ideas. Integrators make those ideas a reality.’ However, one of the challenges for visionaries is they generally founded the business and grew it to a point. Therefore, visionaries usually, have a handle on most things in the business. It can be hard to let go and even harder, to follow new processes set up to scale the business further. It is important for visionaries to ‘hand over the keys’ and let someone else drive. It doesn’t mean having blind faith, there are parameters visionaries help build to direct the company, and that’s called the VTO (Vision Traction Organiser). If you don’t hand over the keys, you haven’t employed an integrator, you’ve employed an executive assistant.

2.  Don’t tap into experience

Visionaries have an incredible amount of corporate knowledge. They are founders, building businesses, nonetheless keeping a laser focus and driving a business to its full potential can be difficult, hence the need for integrators. However, integrators need to respect and tap into the knowledge the visionary has about the business they work in. Visionaries, by their very nature, have tried numerous things to get their business to grow, they know what has worked and hasn’t worked. It’s not the case that integrators should accept those outcomes they should try to understand more about them. Yet, not recognising or respecting the skill and knowledge a visionary brings to the table about what might be next is dangerous. If you don’t tap into the visionary’s experience and knowledge, integrators can expect to be recording their experience and knowledge on their new resume.

3.  Don’t communicate

The relationship between a visionary and integrator is something that they both need to work on – all the time. The secret sauce to business success is making this relationship work well and being a force multiplier for the business. To do this you should see this relationship as the nucleus of the business, the power lies in remaining connected and having no surprises. This is where the ‘Same Page Meeting’ is crucial to ensure you are both working towards the same goals and understand each other’s needs and expectations. If you don’t communicate then you can expect that the result will be like splitting the nucleus of an atom – a massive explosion where the effects will last a lot longer than the initial blast.

4.  Engage in power struggles

Visionaries and integrators perform very different roles in a business. When this is not recognised, visionaries and integrators engage in power struggles. The visionary might feel stifled by the integrator’s practicality, while the Integrator may perceive the visionary as too idealistic. All sorts of things will start to occur, such as lobbying leadership team members to take a side, absenteeism from Level 10 meetings, other members of the team not engaging in crucial discussions because they ‘just want to stay out of it’. Power struggles are a sure-fire way to destroy not only the business but lives. Drop the egos, recognise accountabilities and build a great business or turn the lights off now and save yourself the heartache.

5.  Don’t recognise speed and style

Visionaries often sprint ahead, fuelled by inspiration, while integrators maintain a steady pace. There is a need for both. To be clear steady pace does not mean slow, it means focussing on what is needed to be done and completing it in the best interests of the business. Equally, businesses need someone pushing forward, thinking about what is next, without this a business will not survive, e.g. Kodak (Who you might say? There’s the problem).

Visionaries and integrators should have different styles and speeds. If they were both the same, it will be like either – working in a complete state of flux all the time or a library. To be clear it’s great if you like each other, but you don’t have to, just be effective together. Recognise your individual strengths and use them to create a great outcome. If you’re not in sync, then you can say ‘Bye Bye Bye’ to your business (only those that grew up in the 90’s will get that reference).

Conclusion

Nurturing a healthy Visionary-Integrator relationship involves clear roles, effective communication, mutual respect, and a shared vision. Falling into the trap and doing these five dumb things will kill your business. Remember, it’s not about being right; it’s about being effective.

 Helpful resources:

Take the Fast 50 to see where you are at - Click here

Join the Integrator Academy - Join here