A few weeks ago we co-hosted an event with Gino Wickman called the Integrator Mastery Forum. It’s a full-day interactive workshop for entrepreneurial business leaders of 50 Michigan companies. A common thread throughout the room was that nearly every Integrator has challenges making their relationship more effective with their Visionary. If you’re feeling this way too, you’re not alone! In fact, this is normal.
Here are five rules and five tools for working with your Visionary. These 10 vital guidelines are rocket fuel for your company.
5 Rules for Integrators and Visionaries
- Stay on the same page. Schedule monthly same-page meetings (2-4 hours) for the Visionary and Integrator to check in and IDS issues, so that you’re operating as a united front.
- No end runs. When the Visionary goes around the Integrator to give someone direction, or when someone from the team bypasses the Integrator to go to the Visionary, this is called an end run. Hearing people out is important, but making a decision for someone who isn’t your direct report will cause damage among your team. When hearing out an issue from someone who isn’t your direct report, always end with this statement: “Are you going to tell the Integrator, or am I? Because one of us needs to.”
- The Integrator is the tiebreaker. When the team is divided on a decision, and after everyone has been heard, the Integrator makes the final call.
- Both the Integrator and Visionary are employees when working “in” the business. No double standards here. Integrators and Visionaries have to play by the same rules as everyone else, and have complete accountability for their roles/seats.
- Maintain mutual respect. Friction and tension between Visionaries and Integrators is normal and isn’t necessarily unhealthy. But neither person should make a negative comment about their counterpart to anyone in the organization—ever.
5 Essential Tools for Integrators and Visionaries
The Visionary and Integrator need to be committed to using the following tools together if they want to see the company take off.
- Vision/Traction Organizer—Have a clear vision in writing that is agreed upon by the entire leadership team
- Accountability Chart—Think of this as a super-charged organizational chart with clear roles and responsibilities so everyone knows who is accountable for what
- Rocks—The 3-7 most important priorities for the next 90 days
- Meeting Pulse—The rhythm for holding effective weekly, quarterly, and annual leadership team meetings with an effective agenda
- Scorecard—An absolute pulse on the business through a handful of weekly activity-based numbers (5 to 15) that will enable your team to predict your future financial performance
Get the basics down, practice the 5 rules and the 5 tools between your Visionary and Integrator, and your business will take off like Rocket Fuel!
Want to learn more? These principles are discussed in detail in the book Rocket Fuel, by Gino Wickman and Mark C. Winters. Check it out!
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