Page 134 - Using the Enneagram System to Identify and Grow Your Leadership Strengths and Achieve Maximum Success

Know the Business: Think and Act Strategically 109

understanding and organizing multipart systems and procedures
is matched by their thrill in turning situations that are underor-
ganized into logical and methodical processes that allow people
to take action.
One leaders focus on setting clear, precise, and forward-moving
goals; selecting a manageable number of well-chosen tactics that
are aligned with these goals; and holding themselves and others
accountable for the execution of those tactics, with both quality
and timeliness in mind. Because follow-through is so important to
them, Ones oversee all aspects of execution with diligence and
attention to detail.
One of her team members described Anita, a leader with 15
years of management experience, this way:

“Everything works well under Anita’s leadership. She under-
stands the complexities of our business, yet everything feels
under control. In fact, she thrives on the challenge of taking
something big and making it appear manageable. Somehow,
there is nothing that eludes her attention.”

On the other hand, One leaders—particularly those who are
newer to leadership—may find the complexity of knowing the
business overwhelming at first. Because they want to know all the
details, less experienced One leaders may have difficulty learning
all the aspects of the environment and organization to a sufficient
extent that they feel comfortable. They may also focus on one com-
ponent that, in their opinion, is the most important or most press-
ing—for example, products, services, and technology—without
sufficiently grasping the remaining components and how the
entire system fits together.
In addition, the One leader’s focus on goals and tactics can
come at the expense of developing a clear, compelling vision and
mission, developing an explicit set of strategies, or communicat-
ing these strategies to ensure a high degree of buy-in. Some One
leaders may confuse a tactic with a strategy—for example, they may