S1E12: Is This a Pizza-Level Decision or a High-Level Decision? | David Kolbe and Amy Bruske

Rocket Fuel
Rocket Fuel
S1E12: Is This a Pizza-Level Decision or a High-Level Decision? | David Kolbe and Amy Bruske
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Finding the right Integrator for your business is no easy task, but it doesn’t have to be excruciating. All it takes are the right tools to help you find someone who shares your values and has a complementary skill set.

Today’s guests are step-siblings and have been a Visionary/Integrator Duo for five years. They have refined the search process for the right Integrator or Visionary for their clients to two important lenses: 

  1. Utilizing human behavior insights.
  2. Assessing each business’s unique needs. 

David Kolbe is the CEO and Visionary of Kolbe Corp, which specializes in instinct strength assessments, and Amy Bruske is the President and Integrator. In this episode, they break down the steps to finding a partner that shares your values, has the communication style that’s right for you, and possesses the required skill set.

Key Takeaways: 

  • Visionaries and Integrators cannot operate on the same level if they don’t share the same values. 
  • Hire an Integrator from the entrepreneurial business space.
  • Find a Visionary who is going to teach and mentor their Integrator.
  • Company founders: some day, you have to physically leave the building.

Some Questions Asked: 

  • Do Visionaries and Integrators need to be operating on different planes in order to be successful?
  • How does an Integrator find a Visionary to work for?
  • How does a Visionary find and hire an Integrator?

Complementarity Is Key

David has been involved with Kolbe Corp his whole life — his mom was the founder and he vividly remembers stuffing envelopes and collating paper when he was a child. Amy came to the business after a few years in the corporate world, and instantly fell in love with the vision. Kolbe Corp was the perfect intersection of her passions: human behavior and business.

Once David and Amy started operating on EOS®, they quickly saw that having clearly defined roles sped up their business. The structure helped them identify when they needed guidance from each other and gave them permission to call the shots on smaller decisions, like ordering pizza.

Through their personal and professional experience, David and Amy have realized that there is no silver bullet to Visionary/Integrator success, with one exception:

“I think the most consistent pattern with the Visionary and Integrator combo is they complement each other at least somewhere.” — David [18:33]

Once you decide your company needs an Integrator, starting the search can be daunting. David and Amy recommend:

  • Look at people who are already working for you first.
  • Search outside of your industry.
  • Choose someone you trust.
  • Get on the same page with core values.

“The Visionaries that I see who are most successful are hiring [Integrators] who love the entrepreneurial world.” — Amy [28:11]

If you’re an Integrator looking to work for a Visionary, David and Amy’s advice is to:

  • Make sure the Visionary isn’t hiring an Integrator as an excuse to drop out of the company.
  • Look for a Visionary that communicates well.

“Find a Visionary who is going to teach you, mentor you without micromanaging.” — David [33:21]

If you’re interested in streamlining your decision-making processes and cultivating a complementary Visionary/Integrator partnership, don’t miss this episode of Rocket Fuel.

Learn More:

About The Rocket Fuel Podcast

Every outstanding entrepreneurial business has a common element that launched it to success. 

It has a Visionary who sees the big picture, envisions the future, and lives for challenge and risk. It also has an Integrator™, who works behind the scenes executing the business plan and doing the backbreaking work of making the Visionary’s dreams a reality. 

On their own, these two types of leaders have potential, but together they form an essential relationship that propels their business to new heights – we call that Rocket Fuel™. 

Join real and raw conversations with the world’s top entrepreneurial duos as they talk about their journey to getting more of what they want from their business. Hosted by Mark C. Winters, Visionary and co-author of Rocket Fuel. 

About Mark C. Winters

Mark C. Winters is an Expert EOS Implementer™, co-author of Rocket Fuel alongside Gino Wickman, and the Visionary of Rocket Fuel University™. Since age 28, Mark has started, bought, shut down, or sold 14 companies. Today, he spends much of his time helping entrepreneurial leadership teams run on EOS® and has delivered over 700 full-day sessions with companies around the United States. Mark’s talent for introducing the right combination of perspective and process sparks leadership teams to start moving, move faster, or begin moving in the right direction — with clarity. 

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