g-f(2)2047 The Antidote to Toxic Leadership: A Harvard Expert's 12-Step Prescription

 

genioux Fact post by Fernando Machuca and Claude

Introduction

The article, "Harvard expert who wrote books on ‘bad leadership’ has a 12-step program to break the worst leaders and managers of their ugly habits", based on the book "Leadership From Bad to Worse" by Barbara Kellerman, discusses the pervasiveness of bad leadership and followership, and offers a 12-step program to detect and mitigate bad leadership before it turns toxic.

genioux GK Nugget

"Bad leadership, a sociological disease often ignored until directly affecting us, demands early detection and intervention through follower awareness and action to prevent its inexorable progression and societal damage." — Fernando Machuca and Claude

genioux Foundational Fact

Kellerman argues that bad leadership, though ubiquitous and pernicious, remains marginally addressed compared to physical and psychological ailments, necessitating a structured approach for followers to identify warning signs and take proactive steps to slow or stop its spread.

Top 10 genioux Facts

1. Bad leadership is a social disease affecting all sectors, from business to government, requiring collective concern.
2. Early detection and intervention are crucial, as the longer bad leadership persists, the harder it is to uproot.
3. A checklist approach to identifying bad leadership is challenging due to the complex interplay of leaders, followers, and contexts.
4. Followers play a critical role in course-correcting bad leaders, as leaders rarely self-correct.
5. Opposing a bad leader is generally the right thing to do; failing to do so makes followers complicit enablers.
6. Followers must be contextually intelligent, assessing risks and weighing costs and benefits of action vs. inaction.
7. Acting in tandem with others against a bad leader is safer and more effective than acting alone.
8. Automatic allegiance or blind obedience to leaders should be avoided.
9. The decline of democracy and capitalism are intertwined, with leaders in both spheres responsible for addressing inequities.
10. Time is of the essence in addressing bad leadership before it progresses through worsening phases.

Conclusion

Kellerman's 12-step program emphasizes the critical role of follower awareness, discernment, and timely action in mitigating the societal damage caused by bad leadership, underscoring the collective responsibility to prevent its unchecked progression.

REFERENCE

The g-f GK Article

Barbara Kellerman, Harvard expert who wrote books on ‘bad leadership’ has a 12-step program to break the worst leaders and managers of their ugly habits, FORTUNE, March 6, 2024.

Barbara Kellerman

Barbara Kellerman is an American professor of public leadership, currently at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government². She has previously held professorships at Fordham, Tufts, Fairleigh Dickinson, George Washington, Uppsala universities, and Dartmouth College². Kellerman was one of the founders of the International Leadership Association².

She is the author of the book "Leadership From Bad to Worse: What Happens When Bad Festers"⁵. The book focuses on bad leadership and equally on bad followership⁵. It breaks the process of going from bad leadership/followership to worse into four phases, each more ominous and dangerous than the one that preceded it⁵. The book is intended to serve as an early warning system, making the progression of bad leadership and followership easier to predict and detect⁶.

Source: Conversation with Bing, 3/6/2024

(1) Barbara Kellerman (academic) - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Kellerman_%28academic%29.

(2) Leadership from Bad to Worse: What Happens When Bad Festers. https://academic.oup.com/book/55764.

(3) Leadership from Bad to Worse: What Happens When Bad Festers. https://www.amazon.com/Leadership-Bad-Worse-Happens-Festers/dp/0197759270.

(4) Barbara Kellerman - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Kellerman.

(5) Barbara Kellerman (academic) - Wikiwand. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Barbara_Kellerman_%28academic%29.

(6) Barbara Kellerman | Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/people/barbara-kellerman/.

(7) undefined. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780197759271.001.0001.

Claude's Summary

In her book "Leadership From Bad to Worse," Barbara Kellerman, a Harvard expert on leadership, addresses the pervasive issue of bad leadership and followership. She argues that despite the ubiquity and detrimental effects of bad leadership, it remains a marginally addressed problem compared to physical and psychological ailments. Kellerman presents a 12-step program designed to help followers detect and mitigate bad leadership before it becomes entrenched and toxic.

Kellerman emphasizes the importance of early detection and intervention, as the longer bad leadership persists, the harder it becomes to uproot. She acknowledges the challenges of identifying bad leadership due to the complex interplay of leaders, followers, and contexts. However, she stresses the critical role of followers in course-correcting bad leaders, as leaders rarely self-correct.

The 12-step program outlined in the book includes paying attention to the distinction between good and bad leadership, being contextually intelligent, assessing risks and benefits of action versus inaction, acting in tandem with others, avoiding blind obedience, and recognizing the progression of bad leadership through worsening phases.

Kellerman also highlights the intertwined nature of democracy and capitalism, arguing that leaders in both spheres are responsible for addressing inequities and the erosion of trust in political and economic systems. She emphasizes the urgency of addressing bad leadership before it progresses and causes irreparable societal damage.

Overall, Kellerman's book and the Fortune article underscore the collective responsibility of followers in identifying and mitigating bad leadership. By providing a structured approach and actionable insights, Kellerman empowers followers to become proactive agents of positive change in their organizations and society at large.

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Categorization

This genioux Fact post is classified as Bombshell Knowledge which means: The game-changer that reshapes your perspective, leaving you exclaiming, "Wow, I had no idea!"

Type: Bombshell Knowledge, Free Speech

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References

“genioux facts”: The online program on "MASTERING THE BIG PICTURE OF THE DIGITAL AGE”, g-f(2)2047, Fernando Machuca and Claude, March 6, 2024, Genioux.com Corporation.

 

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