Page 23 - MS Year in Review 2020

There are two types or extremes of dysfunctional leadership: 1) a bias for action,

and 2) the inability to act. A “bias for action” refers to the tendency to take action
in a situation rather than planning a systematic response. Peters and Waterman
described a bias for action as follows: “In its simplest terms, this says ‘get out there

7
and try something. ’”
The “inability to act” or Hamlet Syndrome is the polar opposite of a bias for action.
It refers to an inability to make a decision or act in the face of a problem or crisis. It

is a version of the “Deer in the Headlights” syndrome. We have previously
described and explained the psycho-dynamic of leaders who are victims of the
8
Hamlet syndrome elsewhere.

These are two extremes or end points on a continuum. Both extreme leadership
behaviors can result in dysfunctional results. In this article, I will focus primarily on
a bias for action and leave the inability to act for a later discussion.

THE DYSFUNCTIONAL RESULTS OF A BIAS FOR

ACTION

A bias for action can produce dysfunctional results. Such actions taken as a
response to the crisis to immediately cut costs amount to a “Ready-Fire-Aim”

leadership strategy. For example, in response to the sequestering of people at
home, many organizations are faced with the partial or total loss of revenue. In
extreme case, this might even result in bankruptcy. Accordingly, some

organizations are taking the steps to terminate, layoff or “furlough” employees. In
order to preserve cash and help diminish or prevent economic losses.

While this is an understandable approach or reaction, it might well have very

dysfunctional consequences. Specifically, the organization is sending a clear but
possibly unintended message: “our survival as a business is more important than

7 T. Peters and R. Waterman, In Search of Excellence, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1982.
8 See Eric Flamholtz and Yvonne Randle, The Inner Game of Management, American Management
Association, 1987. This book is currently being revised and updated under contract to Vandeplas
Publishing, and is expected to be published later in 2020.

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