My Way or the Highway - The Danger of Executive Bullying

For generations, victims of schoolyard bullying have been made to feel afraid, powerless and even stupid. They respond by drawing as little attention to themselves as possible and hoping the misery stops.

The outcome is the same when CEOs or other senior leaders subject people to bullying at work. While the corporate bully may not look or act like the playground thug, the victim’s response in either case is to hunker down and get out of the way. The schoolyard bully uses physical violence; the executive bully uses fear or the threat of humiliation to silence critics or contrarian voices.

Executive bullies do not all have the same personality. The most pernicious type is polished and sophisticated. Everything about him sends the message that he is the smartest guy in the room — the one who will make the decisions and get the credit. Although he may ask for others’ opinions and give lip service to their suggestions, it is clear to everyone that his ideas are the only ones that count.

In a corporate setting, that adds up to lost opportunity. People are intimidated into keeping quiet. Product defects are covered up; unethical practices continue unchecked; untenable financial risks are ignored; brilliant ideas never see the light of day.

In today’s complex business world, no single person has all the answers. Leaders who are dismissive, instill fear or continually demonstrate “who’s boss” discourage employees from expressing their ideas. What would have happened if the young Larry Page or Mark Zuckerberg had needed to convince an executive bully that their game-changing ideas were worth pursuing?

Why are so many leaders unwilling to heed messengers who have the best interest of the company at heart? They may think relying on others, expressing doubt or admitting inadequacies are signs of weakness — and weakness is not an option. Most people who have risen to the top have been rewarded for knowing, not asking.

Of course, leaders must sometimes take charge and make tough calls, and do not always have time to collaborate or solicit alternative views. But “my way or the highway” is not a consistently effective way to lead. As former IBM chief Lou Gerstner said, workers should fear the competition, not their bosses. Leaders must solicit diverse viewpoints, remain open to new approaches and be willing to accept harsh realities.

Yet over and over, companies fail to listen to new approaches or warnings of danger ahead. They avoid “unspeakables” — the challenges everyone acknowledges but no one will bring up for fear of incurring the leader’s ire. Thus, employees not only deprive the company of their best thinking; they also miss the opportunity to collaborate and find better solutions.

The bullying effect is especially harmful when senior team members bully their own colleagues. Ideas that could help resolve strategic and operational problems are not even broached, leading to poor decisions and inadequate solutions. Too many companies are leaving money on the table — the financial gains they could have realized had they heeded warnings and embraced new approaches. Just as business success can be traced to a leader’s conduct, so, too, can business failure.

Most leaders want to do the right thing for their companies, their people and their communities. They don’t set out to be bullies — even the worst offenders probably don’t think of themselves that way — but they may become bullies nevertheless. Executives could achieve better results by collaborating to address complex issues instead of unilaterally dictating the way forward.

The bottom line: executive bullying is not good for business.

Susan Annunzio teaches worldwide open and customised executive education programmes at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She is also President and CEO of The Center for High Performance, a Chicago-based organisational consulting and research firm.