Our Integrator just resigned abruptly, leaving our leadership team without operational integration. Should our founder and Visionary step back into the Integrator seat temporarily, or should our department heads divide the Integrator responsibilities while we search for a replacement?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Never split the Integrator seat among department heads. The Integrator seat requires single accountability to resolve disputes, hold leaders accountable, run the Level 10 Meeting, and ensure execution of the business plan. Splitting those accountabilities among peers creates immediate political gridlock. Department heads cannot objectively hold each other accountable, break ties between their own departments, or manage their own resource allocations without conflict of interest.

When an Integrator leaves abruptly, the Visionary must temporarily take back the seat or appoint one capable senior leader as the designated interim Integrator.

If the Visionary steps into the seat, you must be disciplined about wearing the Integrator hat. You cannot treat this emergency as an excuse to inject chaos, launch ten new unvetted initiatives, or rewrite quarterly Rocks. Your sole mandate in the Integrator seat is keeping the trains running on time, facilitating the weekly Level 10 Meeting, and holding the team accountable to the existing V/TO and quarterly commitments.

If you have an established operational leader on the team who demonstrates strong GWC for the role, appointing them as interim Integrator provides a natural audition. It gives the team stability while allowing you to evaluate whether an internal promotion is viable or if an external executive search is required. Whatever path you choose, keep exactly one name in the seat.