Leadership Mistakes

For Bill Gates, tirades came at a cost

July 14, 2017
In February 1985, Ida Cole joined Microsoft as one of its first female vice presidents. Within months, her relationship with the mercurial Bill Gates worsened. His confrontational style created a tense workplace.

Should you apologize?

July 9, 2017
For a leader, a public apology always involves risk. Here are some questions to help you walk the line between stonewalling and groveling.

3 memorable apology whiffs

June 29, 2017
It’s been a busy year for the word “Sorry.” We’ve seen the maddening, the middling and the almost there.

Dig for answers from the field

June 1, 2017
While there’s no guarantee Gavin Patterson would have uncovered the extent of his company’s accounting fraud if he had spent more time there, his lack of involvement didn’t help.

Advice to United: Add a zero

May 31, 2017
What to do in a situation where it’s obvious your company screwed up royally?

After blunder, confess and explain

May 2, 2017
In 2008, Jim Whitehurst took a big risk. And it backfired. From it he learned that as powerful as a CEO’s accessibility is, nothing builds engagement more than being accountable.

After blunder, confess and explain

May 2, 2017
In 2008, Jim Whitehurst took a big risk. And it backfired. From it he learned that as powerful as a CEO’s accessibility is, nothing builds engagement more than being accountable.

The psychology of the Oscars disaster

April 25, 2017
Catastrophic failures aren’t usually caused by one or two big mess-ups but by a series of cascading errors. So it was at this year’s Academy Awards, where a number of factors contributed to the wrong movie being announced as Best Picture.

After blunder, confess and explain

April 18, 2017
In 2008, Jim Whitehurst took a big risk. And it backfired. From it he learned that as powerful as a CEO’s accessibility is, nothing builds engagement more than being accountable.

Be the leader everybody hates!

March 21, 2017
Tired of hearing about servant leadership? Want people to shut up and do what you tell them? Take these steps and they will fall right in line…for now.