Is a Second the Same as an Integrator?
Both Seconds and Integrators operate behind the scenes but they're not the same thing. Here's how the EOS Integrator concept compares to what a Second actually is.
Kyren Mearr Cabellon
Fractional Integrator · Second as a Service
Before we get into the roles and responsibilities of a Second and how Seconds can help you and your business, let us start by defining what a Second is. Clearing that up first will help address some of the confusion around similar terms that are out there.
What is an Integrator?
Let us start with the term Integrator, which was introduced by Gino Wickman in the book Traction.
An Integrator is a job or role within the EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System). It is the role that keeps an organisation on track and in alignment with its core purpose. The people in this role hold almost everything together: from people, processes, and systems to strategies.
Integrators primarily work with the leadership team, especially in larger organisations, and collaborate across departments in smaller ones. Out of everyone they work with, their closest relationship is with the Visionary. The Visionary is the idea-generating engine of the organisation. The Integrator mobilises those ideas and moves them toward the organisation's goals.
Integrators are accountable for the company's operating system, or how the business functions. They execute the business plan, harness the Visionary's ideas, keep the team aligned, and act as the overall project manager, making sure everything is properly managed on a day-to-day basis.
In short: the Integrator is a defined job or role that can exist in small or large organisations. It primarily interfaces with the leadership team and lives within the EOS framework.
Are They the Same as a Second?
Close.
But not that close.
A Second is more than a role. For me personally, it is an identity I have proudly embraced. Why? Because of how Nathan Young and David Hartman defined it in How to Be Second. Their definition captured something that no personality test had ever been able to answer for me.
A Second can be an Integrator, but an Integrator does not always need to be a Second. A Second can thrive in many different roles. In the next series of "What is a Second?" posts, I will be exploring how that identity is defined, drawing heavily from How to Be Second. I love this book. When I read it, it gave me more clarity about myself than any other book I have read.
I am also on this journey with you as I continue to discover what being a Second really means. Out of all the personality frameworks I studied in my Psychology classes, both in my Bachelor's and my Master's, this is the one I have embraced most fully.
Follow the Authors
You can gain a lot more insight by following the authors of How to Be Second on LinkedIn:
If you would also like to look into my experience or connect, you can find me on LinkedIn.
See you in the next post. 👋
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