One Bad Leader

  One more 2 pointer extra credit post for Leadership 325! 

     In a recent leadership class, we were asked to write about a bad leader we have known.  Well, that was a no brainer.  I have been in the work force for many years.  I started my first job when I was 16 and I will be 55 in a few weeks.  You do the math.  I have dealt with various levels of incompetency from bosses and leaders.  But I had no idea how bad it could be until I met this one.  For the sake of anonymity, and to keep me from being sued, we’ll call her “Joyce”.

     Part of the class assignment was to categorize our “bad leader” according to an article we had just read called, “Making Meaning of Being Bad” by Barbara Kellerman.  An excellent read, I might add.

     I couldn’t pigeonhole Joyce into just one category of bad leaders, as she is surely a combination of several.  “Incompetent”, however, was not one of them (though one of the choices from the article).  I assume this is why she is still working and why the executive office seemed to adore her, she got the job done!  Every “i” was dotted and every “t” crossed.  And I mean every.  Nothing escaped her notice.  Through all of this, I did learn to turn in a damn good report.  Hey, I didn’t say I didn’t learn anything in this job, I’m just saying – I almost didn’t survive it.  And I’m not being dramatic here.  In fact, I would call this an abusive situation where I was harassed and demeaned on nearly a daily basis.  And in my opinion, and in the opinion of the many people I worked with (except her) I was doing a very good job.  During this isolative, abusive time (as she was careful not to say these things when anyone else was around), I started to implode.  My personality changed to the point that I was withdrawn, and I had a relatively flat affect.  My health suffered.  I lost confidence.  I got to the point where I didn’t even recognize myself anymore.  This class section on Bad Leadership, seems to be helping me make sense of, and process that horrible experience from which I am still trying to recover.

     But about Joyce…

Rigid Leadership—the leader and at least some followers are stiff and unyielding. Although they may be competent, they are unable or unwilling to adapt to new ideas, new information, or changing times.

     Yep, I’d say Rigid Leader describes her.

Corrupt Leadership—the leader and at least some followers lie, cheat, or steal. To a degree that exceeds the norm, they put self-interest ahead of the public interest.

     Perhaps a bit harsh, and certainly not completely true, but I would call her a Corrupt Leader.  I saw her do things that I felt were unethical.  I never saw any cheating or stealing, but I did see lying.  And it was usually about those down the chain of command.  This included me. To this day, my HR file contains her lies that I had no power to expunge.  When it came to my word vs her’s, there was no question who they were going to believe.

Callous Leadership—the leader and at least some followers are uncaring or unkind. Ignored or discounted are the needs, wants, and wishes of most members of the group or organization, especially subordinates.

     If I were to pick just one category to describe Joyce’s leadership style, it would be Callous Leader.  Time and time again, I saw her totally discount or ignore the needs of others.  Sadly, this often included the people we were supposed to be serving in that office.  It sickened me.  I tried so hard to clean up the mess she would leave in her wake.  I think that’s one of the reasons I stayed far too long in that job, I thought I could make a positive difference.  Perhaps I did, but I now understand that the price I paid was too great.  The whole experience left me barely able to care for myself, let alone anyone else.