Inside Small Business | Small Business & Home Business Marketing

Five Ways Leaders Destroy Companies

Kevin Kennemer, SPHR

Success is a team sport. It takes the entire team, from entry level employees all the way up the ladder to the executive suite, to run the company engine on all cylinders.

The environmental factors leading to a company’s failure, on the other hand, typically flows down from the top. It is unfortunate the number of senior executives ready, willing and able to quickly assign the blame of failure squarely on employees. However, the entire workforce doesn’t show up to work and uniformly decide to screw up the company. The common scenario is that leadership begins to make decisions that begin to negatively alter the course of the organization, ultimately leading to its demise.

What are leadership actions that are potential signals the company is headed for trouble? Here are some clues your company could be headed for rough waters.

#1 - Me, Me, Me: When leadership decisions are guided by “what’s in it for me?” This is a sign leaders are less interested in the long-term viability of a company and more interested in their own personal short-term gain. If this is happening it’s like working at Titanic Inc. A good indication this is happening is when company decisions are made based on how it will affect executive compensation and their incentive payouts.

#2 – Communicate is a Four Syllable Word: When the leadership starts to communicate with employees on a “need to know” basis, start running for the exits. When employees read important company news in the newspaper rather than the company newsletter, develop an exit strategy. A lack of communication typically indicates leaders are hiding bad news, making decisions without sufficient input, or possibly courting a new buyer for the company, unaware of the financial benefits of teamwork, making a play on a new company with excessive staff levels, or simply do not like people and avoid employees at all cost.

#3 - Executive Bullies at Work Here: One time I was told by the president it was my fault there was bad Karma in the company. Funny thing I was not the one yelling, screaming and cursing at employees on a daily basis. Employees were being physically and mentally destroyed by this executive bully and I wanted to put a stop to it. As a result, I became the bad guy for trying to curtail an out-of-control executive’s behavior. Now I was considered disloyal to the company. My career was put on ice by a new supervisor where frustrating my every move was his daily goal.

#4 - Lack of Vision: When senior leadership does not make time to adequately explain the vision and mission of a company, employees will lose interest in the company and not engage in the important work of the company. Sometimes executives are afraid they will share their valuable secrets if they talk to employees about their mission, vision and values. Some executives think employees should just know this stuff without the president taking time to explain it. “If you are so smart, why do I have to explain this human resource crap to you,” is the general feeling. People perish due to a lack of vision, states the scriptures. Companies file Chapter 11 due to lack of vision.

And #5 - Who is the President? Besides the need to trust and respect their leaders, employees need to know who is running the company. I once worked at a company where the president was rarely seen walking around in the office. We would go months and months before seeing him. There is a comfort feeling knowing you have an active, engaged president who cares for employees at the helm of the ship. If the president is rarely seen and seldom walks around to visit with employees - except for maybe the Christmas Party - this could be quite unsettling to the workforce. This same president loved to meet with local charities and press gatherings but avoided his own employees. It’s like a football coach going absent from practice and the sidelines during games and only appearing in front of the team when it is time for the news conference. If you have leaders who hide in their execu-caves, the next thing missing might be your paycheck.
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Kevin Kennemer is president of The People Group a consulting firm committed to enhancing employee lives, increasing business performance and improving society through positive people practices. With twenty years of people practice experience, Kennemer was formerly the chief human resource officer of an international energy company that rose from obscurity to #5 on Forbes list of largest privately held companies. Kennemer is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources.

Related Topics: Branding, Business, Employee Relations, Entrepreneurship, Leadership    No Comments    

Science Experiments

David Grenda, Founder, Grenda Computer Consulting

We all have certain places in our offices (and some of our homes) that get a bit neglected in the cleaning department. Eventually we get around to feeling guilty enough to make the effort to clean up. If we are lucky, the area in question has not yet started its own ecosystem. Having spent enough time under people’s desks moving things around, I’ve often wished myself for a little cleaning inspiration on behalf of my esteemed clients.

One area of much importance related to all this is the inside of your computer’s case. I have popped the siding off more than one computer only to find a layer of dirt and grime that has actually stopped the fans from doing their job. This contributes to overheating and eventually the failure of one or more components.

You should regularly use a can of compressed air (it’s not actually “air”, and be careful not to breath it – see the can) to blow out all the dust and dirt from the inside of the case. Pay particular attention to the power supply. That’s the box like structure with all the wires coming out to the computer parts. This component has a fan inside that moves air through it and into the case.

Taking this simple cleaning step will ensure that your warranty is not voided due to “improper maintenance” of the computer. It will also make your computer technician happier. We’ve spent enough time in science class!

If you would like further guidance in considering the options, feel free to drop me an email at david@grenda.com.

Related Topics: Business, Computers, Entrepreneurship, Technology    1 Comment