Episodes on Leadership

These are episodes that discuss matters of leadership from direct supervisory to all levels of managers and executives. Subtopics include:

  • Power and influence exercised by leaders over their subordinates and others
  • The environment of leading -- stewardship, ethics, morals, and related behavior
  • Conceptions of leadership from great man theory to servant leadership and beyond
  • Timeless, persistent issues facing leaders


5-8. How Mandatory Training Can Feel Less ‘Mandatory’

Mandatory training serves important purposes but can be painful and ineffective in execution. Are there ways to do it better?

5-7. Responsible Leadership: More than Being a Responsible Leader?

A leader’s responsibilities are more than accomplishing missions and caring for members, it is that the organization itself acts responsibly

5-5. Why Can’t We Just Stop Using MacGregor’s Theory X?

If we favor Theory Y management, why can’t we just abandon Theory X? Is it because we learned to rely on Theory X or are we hard-wired not to trust people?

5-2. Is Anti-Professionalism on the Rise?

Professions and professionalism are both under pressure from within and externally — so how can we re-energize the spirit of professionalism?

4-8. When an External Consultant is Too Close to the Leader

When leaders hire friends or colleagues as consultants, what happens when the consultants overstep their authorities or become abusive to members?

4-6. Firing the Coach Instead of the Players (and Other Counternarratives Against Leaders)

Following previous discussions about counternarratives against organizations, this episode explores how they apply against the organization’s leaders

4-3. When a Leader Falls From Grace, Should That Negate Their Positive Contributions?

When leaders commit misconduct or otherwise harm their reputation, some people dismiss the good that the leader did. When, if at all, is this appropriate?

4-2. When Unresolvable Tensions Exist, How Can Leaders Maintain Unity?

Organizations face counternarratives continuously. Are there ways of defending the organization against them without resorting to defensiveness?

3-8. On an Organization’s Commitment to Its Members’ Families

My third episode looking at an organization’s commitment and obligations to its members, this time focusing on the care and welfare of members’ families

3-1. Planned Change and the ‘Story of the Four Commanders’

There are many ways to achieve the desired ends of a change effort. This episode discusses four broad strategies with their strengths and weaknesses

2-5. Leadership and Personal Risk

To what extent is having a publicly renowned leader — one whose name because a brand separate form the organization — a good thing, or is it too risky?

2-1. The Face of the Franchise

To what extent is having a publicly renowned leader — one whose name because a brand separate form the organization — a good thing, or is it too risky?

1-9. Organizational Commitment to Members — Revisited

I get a chance to revisit one of my own pieces — about the extent to which Milton Hershey’s commitment to his factory workers applies to other contexts.