Introduction: The Revelation of a Canadian Economist

In 1994, a book published in Montreal would change the way thousands of managers, entrepreneurs and intellectuals perceive leadership. Its title: Artistes, artisans et technocrates (Artists, Craftsmen, and Technocrats; English version: The Drama of Leadership, 1996). Its author: Patricia Pitcher, a Canadian economist, former Chief Economist of the Toronto Stock Exchange, who became a professor at HEC Montréal after a doctorate supervised by the famous Henry Mintzberg.

This book, voted "Business Book of the Century" in 2007 on the centenary of HEC Montréal, is based on a simple yet remarkably powerful idea: there are three main families of leaders, which Pitcher calls Artists, Craftsmen, and Technocrats. But beyond this typology, what makes this grid truly universal is that it can be applied to many other fields beyond business management: philosophy, art, personal development, and project management.

We have taken Patricia Pitcher's logic a step further. By cross-referencing each basic profile (Artist, Craftsman, Technocrat) with three levels of intensity (Excess, Balance, Deficit), we first obtain a matrix of 9 Fundamental Types, and then, by combining the three dimensions within a single individual, 27 Profiles or Styles. Like a prism that breaks down white light into a spectrum of colors, this grid breaks down human behavior to reveal the richness and complexity of leadership dynamics.

In this article, we will explore this system, understand its foundations, first discover the 9 types and then the complete list of the 27 profiles, and see how to apply them concretely in three essential areas: business management, project management, and personal development.

Part 1: The Three Fundamental Colors

Before diving into the 9 types and the 27 profiles, we must first understand the three basic profiles identified by Patricia Pitcher. These are the three primary colors of our prism.

The Artist: The Visionary Who Builds Bridges to the Unknown

The Artist is that rare leader who "builds bridges to unknown shores". He is intuitive, imaginative, unpredictable, and passionate. He sees the world in terms of possibilities, emerging trends, and desirable futures. He does not always care about details, which allows him to delegate easily, but also means he can sometimes be seen as a dreamer.

Characteristics: inventive, witty, inspiring, exciting, visionary, bold, emotional.

Famous Examples: Walt Disney, Bill Gates, Ted Turner, René Lévesque, Abraham Lincoln.

The Craftsman: The Pillar Who Enables Others to See Their Projects Through

The Craftsman is the most frequent and, according to Pitcher, the most important for the health of organizations. In love with his craft, with quality, with professionalism, he shows how it should be done instead of making speeches. He is realistic, stable, and trustworthy. The craftsman enables the artist to realize his dreams.

Characteristics: balanced, obliging, honest, sensible, responsible, realistic, predictable, reasonable.

Famous Example: 3M is cited as a model company of craftsmen: you do not know the names of its leaders, you know its products.

The Technocrat: The Manager Who Thrives on Rules and Systems

The Technocrat is cerebral, rigid, and stubborn. He rationalizes, intellectualizes, and represses his emotions. Brilliant, certainly, but often "to impress, not to enlighten". He is necessary in an organization, but dangerous if he holds absolute power. Pitcher even draws a troubling parallel between the technocrat and certain psychopathic traits: "They do not learn from their mistakes because they are convinced they never make any. They tolerate no other style".

Characteristics: difficult, uncompromising, rigid, intense, finicky, determined, stubborn, austere.

Famous Example: Eddie Lampert at Sears is cited as an almost perfect case of a technocrat, preferring to "play with structures" (spin-offs, REITs) rather than focusing on customers and employees.

Part 2: The Foundational Matrix – The 9 Leadership Types

Before addressing the complex profiles, it is essential to understand the matrix that generates them. Our analytical grid is a double-entry table:

• In columns: the three basic profiles: Artist, Craftsman, Technocrat.
• In rows: the three levels of intensity with which each profile can manifest: Excess (🔴), Balance (🟢), Deficit (🟡).

This cross yields 9 fundamental types, which describe pure configurations where a type of leader is present with a certain intensity. These 9 types are like the elementary bricks from which we will build the 27 complex profiles.

The 9 Fundamental Leadership Types

These nine configurations describe pure situations. In reality, an individual or a situation can be described by one of these types when a single dimension strongly dominates all the others.

Part 3: The 27 Leadership Profiles

In reality, an individual is never reducible to a single cell. Each of us possesses, to varying degrees, a part of Artist, Craftsman, and Technocrat. It is by combining these three dimensions that we obtain the 27 profiles.

Each profile is identified by three colored dots (in the order Artist-Craftsman-Technocrat) which indicate the intensity of each dimension within the person.

Table of the 27 Profiles

Profiles with Artist Predominance (vision dominates)

Profiles with Craftsman Predominance (craft dominates)

Profiles with Technocrat Predominance (structure dominates)

Part 4: Application to Business Management

How can this grid help a director, an investor, or a board of directors?

Identifying a CEO's Dominant Profile

In an investor forum, one participant applied Pitcher's grid to evaluate leaders like Mike Pearson (Valeant) or Eddie Lampert (Sears), classifying them as "pure technocrats". The ensuing discussion showed the subtlety of the exercise: Lou Gerstner, despite being from McKinsey, may have saved IBM thanks to a vision (Artist) rather than his technocracy alone.

Concrete Example: A company led by a profile 5 (🔴🟢🟢 - The Effective Dreamer) like Akio Morita at Sony can revolutionize a sector. But if this same leader shifts to profile 1 (🔴🔴🔴 - The Chaotic Demiurge), projects become unfeasible.

Composing a Balanced Management Team

Patricia Pitcher insists: the ideal is to let artists and craftsmen work together, and to give technocrats "the power of control, not control over power". A high-performing management team should include:

• A balanced Artist (type 🟢 from the matrix, or profile 5, 14) for long-term vision
• A balanced Craftsman (type 🟢 from the matrix, or profile 14, 23) for operational excellence
• A balanced Technocrat (type 🟢 from the matrix, or profile 14, 26) for processes and control

The danger is when a technocrat in excess (type 🔴 from the matrix, or profile 22 🟡🟢🔴, 25 🟡🟡🔴) takes power: they drive away artists, demoralize craftsmen, and the company loses its soul.

Diagnosing Drifts

The grid enables a quick diagnosis:

• Too many profile 3 (🔴🔴🟡) or 9 (🔴🟡🟡) in the team? The company is creative but chaotic, unable to deliver.
• Too many profile 19 (🟡🔴🔴) or 22 (🟡🟢🔴)? The company is bureaucratic, stifling, losing momentum.
• Too many profile 27 (🟡🟡🟡)? It is time for urgent dismissals.

Part 5: Application to Project Management

Project management is a prime field for this grid, because a successful project requires precisely all three qualities: vision, execution, and organisation.

Building a Project Team

For an innovation project, you will need:

• A visionary project manager (profile 5 or 14) to carry the vision and convince stakeholders.
• Technical experts (profile 14 or 23) to make it happen.
• A coordinator (profile 23 or 26) to manage schedules, budgets, and reporting.

Anticipating Risks

Each profile carries specific risks during a project:

Example: Launching a New Product

Imagine a start-up developing a revolutionary application.

• The founder is a profile 5 (🔴🟢🟢): strong vision, competent in coding, organizes time well. He can lead the MVP alone.
• Growth phase: he hires a profile 23 (🟡🟢🟢) for daily management and a profile 14 (🟢🟢🟢) to manage the technical team. The balance is perfect.
• Crisis phase: if the founder becomes a profile 1 (🔴🔴🔴) under pressure, or if the manager becomes a profile 22 (🟡🟢🔴) for fear of chaos, the project derails.

Part 6: Application to Personal Development

Finally, and perhaps most powerfully, this grid can serve as a tool for personal development and self-knowledge.

Self-Diagnosis

Take time to honestly assess yourself on three axes:

1. Artist Axis: Do I have a clear vision of what I want to achieve? Can I inspire others? Is my imagination realistic or delusional? Am I in Excess (🔴), Balance (🟢), or Deficit (🟡)?
2. Craftsman Axis: Do I master my craft? Am I rigorous in execution? Am I too rigid or not reliable enough?
3. Technocrat Axis: Am I organized? Do my processes help me or stifle me? Can I structure without becoming bureaucratic?

Identifying Your Dominant Profile

Based on your answers, you can locate yourself in the grid. A few examples:

• Young creative but disorganized entrepreneur: probably profile 6 (🔴🟢🟡) or 9 (🔴🟡🟡). Advice: partner with a good organizer (profile 23) or develop your technocrat skills.
• Rigorous technical expert without vision: profile 23 (🟡🟢🟢) or 24 (🟡🟢🟡). Advice: seek to develop your vision, or work for an artist who can give you direction.
• Stifling process-oriented manager: profile 22 (🟡🟢🔴). Advice: learn to let go, trust, cultivate your intuition.

Targeted Development Plan

Once your profile is identified, you can work on your weak points:

If you are in excess (🔴) on an axis, the goal is to temper:

Conclusion: Towards Balanced Leadership

The grid of 9 types and 27 profiles, a natural extension of Patricia Pitcher's work, is not a tool for definitively labelling people. It is a prism for understanding the richness of human behavior, a common language for dialogue about our strengths and weaknesses, and a compass for navigating the complexity of organisations.

The goal is not to perfectly achieve profile 14 (🟢🟢🟢), but to become aware of our imbalances and act to correct them. An artist who ignores himself needs to surround himself with craftsmen and technocrats. A technocrat who ignores himself needs to cultivate his artist and craftsman sides before it is too late.

As Patricia Pitcher herself said: "At university, I strive to ensure that my students open themselves to art, philosophy, psychology so that, later, they become more sensitive, more cultured managers, and not robots who blindly apply recipes".

This openness, this sensitivity, this culture, is precisely what allows one to move from a rigid and unbalanced profile to authentic, humane, and effective leadership. This is the whole challenge of this work on oneself and on one's teams.

So, what is your fundamental type today? And towards which style do you want to evolve?