Excerpts from
Ichak Adizes: Leading The Leaders
Adizes Institute Publications

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A PaEi Entrepreneur knows what he wants and why he wants it … He has an idea and a purpose, and he can translate that idea into reachable and achievable outcomes. His creativity is focused on making the idea a reality … Ideas without results annoy him, and results that are not born out of BIG ideas are a waste of time.

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What happens, however, if the (E)ntrepreneurial role is performed exclusively, and the other three PAI roles are not? The style of this leader is 00E0, whom I call an Arsonist. He is very creative and full of ideas and charges at any target that appears on his organizational horizon …What we do is not important. How we do it is not important either. The Arsonist is concerned with why not do it...

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They have a huge need to build something new, which often means destroying what’s already in place. They feel they have to start from scratch or change what is there, even if what already exists is more than adequate already …In a company managed by an Arsonist, Monday mornings are dangerous, because over the weekend the Arsonist has had time to think - and guess what? New directions, new priorities, new goals, new objectives.

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Working for an Arsonist can be very frustrating - no matter what you do, the Arsonist will find fault with it (he has a better idea), and because his priorities are continually changing; before you’ve completed one project, he wants to know why you haven’t made any progress on a new one … Picture an organization as an axle. There is a big wheel at one end ( “A big wheel” in corporate lingo means top manager) and a small wheel at the other end. When the big wheel makes one revolution, the small wheel, the subordinates, must turn many times. If the big wheel is an Arsonist, he will frequently change direction while the smaller wheels are still in motion. Eventually, the gears of the smaller wheels are stripped, and the axle breaks down. The big wheel is left spinning alone. That makes him furious, but the (--E-) does not realize that he himself is responsible for the breakdown. Instead, he thinks, “Somebody must be undermining my efforts.” He becomes paranoid and looks for someone to blame.

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Arsonists often contradict themselves. An (--E-) often says, “It’s too late to disagree with me; I’ve already changed my mind.” He starts with one angle and changes to another angle and then a third angle, and eventually, you can’t follow what he’s saying.

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In conversation, the Arsonist is emotional and expressive. He uses words like “never,” “always,” and “impossible.” He exaggerates and intimidates.

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A leader with the Arsonist managerial style does not measure the cost of his plans against their value … he focuses on value, not cost. (--E-) is always talking about all the brilliant innovations he’s going to make. But how much will they cost? “These are details,” he’ll shrug. This is why an Arsonist can build a big company and lose it overnight.

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Arsonists are often considered to be narcissistic, self-centered troublemakers. They always act like they know best. They are constantly giving advice and hardly stand to take it.

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(--E-)s surround themselves with weak people because an (--E-) has to win every argument, and weak subordinates will never challenge him. The subordinates learn not to reject his plans outright, because he will interpret a rejection of his ideas as a rejection of himself. Thus, the subordinates are forced to accept tasks that they already know are impractical … when the bad results pour in, the Arsonist typically complains about his staff, “Nobody understands me.” No one is following the priorities; “It is difficult to soar with the eagles when you are surrounded by turkeys” is a typical (E) expression.

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Sometimes the Arsonist will go through successive stages of firing and bringing in someone new. He thinks the new person on the block is a perfect … for a while. Six months later, the Arsonist becomes disillusioned and discards him and starts looking for a new person to put on a pedestal … for a while too.

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An Arsonist does not feel or think that he needs to change. It is everybody else that needs to change.

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