Founders often find it difficult to turn certain aspects of their business over to other people. When you’ve created a business from scratch, it can be difficult to delegate and learn to take on more managerial responsibilities.
No doubt competent individuals exist. In fact, they are referred to as integrators, and their contribution to a business can include:
- Working headway with the founder
- Partnering with teams to achieve aims and objectives
- Bringing about a bright spark in the level of growth
- Organizing team structure to enable unity and realism
Integrators are well-cultured people who bring aspects into a company that can help them reach successful outcomes. They don’t shy away from duties and always ensure that everyone is being as productive as possible.
What Is an Integrator in Business?
The term “integrator” was coined by Gino Wickman in his best-selling business books Traction and Rocketfuel. You typically learn about integrators when implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) as a management practice for your company.
“An Integrator is a person who is the tie-breaker for the leadership team, is the glue for the organization, holds everything together, beats the drum (provides cadence), is accountable for the P&L results, executes the business plan, holds the Leadership Team accountable, and is the steady force in the organization.” (EOS Worldwide).
What Makes a Good Integrator?
Numerous folks claim to be integrators, but it’s hard to find a perfect one. In fact, their scarcity is a result of the wide range of abilities they possess, and they can immediately implement them in your business upon their recruitment. Integrators are calm and knowledgeable people with a flair for getting the right results. Aside from being someone who has worked in several places, integrators also adapt quickly to whichever business they find themselves in.
The features of an excellent integrator include the following:
- Emotional intelligence
- Having an outstanding level of understanding of situations
- Mentally equipped and sharp-minded
- Can diminish difficult situations and make them simple to solve
- Broad-minded and objective
Integrators are the kind of employees that you can always count on to protect and fully equip your business. Because of their unbiased nature, they can foster relationships and resolve conflicts inside and outside an organization.
Are Integrators Visionary?
In every business that’s operating the EOS model, there are always two leadership styles, namely:
- Visionary
- Integrator
Well, let’s describe a scenario where you set up a business and bring in someone to assist in propelling it forward. It’s simple to conclude that you are the visionary, i.e., the founder, while the person hired to carry on integral responsibilities is the integrator.
While visionaries are founders, their features include the following:
- Embrace risk since they are responsible for ideas creation
- Possess charisma
- Can solve problems with creativity
- Always knowledgeable about industry happenings
For integrators, they exhibit characteristics like:
- Belief in providing quality
- Decisive and notional intellectuals
- Love team cohesion
- Skilled in dealing with business barriers
- Always want to ensure stability
Roles That Integrators Play in Businesses
If you want a great team with tremendous leadership and a regular basis of high achievement, it’s time to bring in an integrator. They are essential to a business because, most times, they are like the missing piece.
Let’s consider some reasons why integrators are crucial to a company.
1. They’re Smart and Calculative
There are times when situations arise, and as a business owner, you may be unable to resolve them quickly. That’s why an integrator can step in and offer a solution.
They help businesses by:
- Setting up plans to avoid challenges before they occur
- Knowing which solution to apply to a challenge at a particular time
- Tackling problems fast and ensuring they reduce any damage that may arise
2. They’re Consistent Performers
You might wonder why an integrator comes into a business and immediately makes a significant impact. Well, integrators are people who like to produce high input in whatever responsibilities are given to them.
Integrators’ consistency in performing allows businesses to:
- Continue to forge on the right path
- See consistent, great results
- Build a brand’s image
3. They’re Logical at Developing Employees
No employee wants to enter a business and not develop their skills or improve their level of executing jobs. An integrator can help your business by encouraging teams to grow while providing mentorship.
They help your company through the following:
- Boosting employee happiness
- Decreasing the rate of resignation
- Planting vibrancy and progressive vibes within the workplace
Integrators are also logical, which means they look at issues from a realistic point of view.
4. They Know How to Give Priority to a Particular Goal
As a business owner, inevitably, you may have several ideas that you hope to see through to fruition.
But, trying to accomplish so many goals at a time can:
- Cause employee disorientation
- Distort strategies set in place
- Bring about progress stagnation
- Produce many distractions
That’s why hiring an integrator is essential to prevent such a scenario. Integrators help you to filter your goals, focus on them one at a time, and ultimately achieve them.
Key Takeaways
While it’s not wrong to have a business of your own, employing capable hands that can see its successful establishment is essential. Nobody likes to set up a business and fail, so you must take action. An integrator is crucial for your business because they are good leaders, goal-oriented and consistent achievers.
