Our two co-founders insist on sharing the Integrator seat as co-Integrators because they have always made decisions together. How do we handle this on our Accountability Chart without violating the rule of one name per seat?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

You cannot have two names in the Integrator seat. Having co-Integrators is a recipe for operational gridlock, mixed messages, and massive frustration for the rest of your leadership team. When two people are responsible for a single seat, nobody is truly accountable.

To resolve this, you must separate the seat from your personal relationships and look at the structure objectively. The Integrator seat has a very specific set of roles, which include running the daily operations, integrating the leadership team, and executing the business plan. It requires a singular voice to break ties and drive execution.

First, run both co-founders through a GWC evaluation specifically for the Integrator seat. Look at their conative profiles and natural working styles. Usually, one co-founder is naturally more suited to the daily management and execution of the Integrator seat, while the other is more suited to vision, culture, and big-picture relationships.

If one co-founder GWCs the Integrator seat and the other does not, the choice is clear. The other co-founder can take the Visionary seat, which is a highly valuable role that focuses on long term strategy, big deals, and culture.

If they both GWC the Integrator seat, they must still choose only one person to hold it. The other co-founder must step into a different seat on the leadership team, such as Head of Sales or Head of Product, where they can bring their talents to bear without muddying the lines of reporting.

Your leadership team needs a single leader to look to for final decisions. Force the choice, document a single name in the Integrator seat, and use your Level 10 Meeting™ to keep both founders aligned.