LEADERSHIP
How Mis-Leaders Hijack Organizations
By Prof . Dr . Ajit Patil
A few of my readers have experiences of the leadership which doesn ' t concur with the leadership traits which I have been portraying in my articles . Why ? I realized that they have been working for ' Misleaders ' while I am writing about leaders . Bosses are of five types : managers , nonleaders , quasi-leaders , mis-leaders , and leaders . I have been writing about the leaders and managers . I also wrote about quasi-leaders .
This article is about mis-leaders who mislead the organization and push it in the wrong direction , spoil its heritage , culture , team spirit , image , net worth , and bring many more things of disrepute . Such mis-leaders are the curse for any organization . How do they rise to power ? How do they mislead ? What damage do they cause ? Can the organization be saved from them ?
Who are Misleaders ?
Misleaders are the people who mis-lead the organization . They depart from the mission , have no vision , and demoralize the whole team . They are the people who have not understood the leadership game .
There are different categories of misleaders . A few have intentions problem . They don ' t wish to understand the leadership role well because they intend to be autocratic . Leaders of the family managed businesses are susceptible to this disease . Some of them try to emulate their earlier generation failing to understand the changing business environment . Certain things worked earlier but can ' t work in the new context . They have their own views about the leadership that don ' t match with others .
The second group is incompetent leaders who lack the required talent , perception , and attitudes . Some of them are too stiff and aren ' t coachable , others lack the capability to learn , they are slow learners . They can ' t develop the required leadership qualities like the attitudes , skills and knowledge . Even MBA can ' t transform the misleaders . Their sins and weaknesses are deeply rooted .
Misleaders remain just ' office-bearers '
Misleaders remain just ' office-bearers ' who never get acceptance from the team . They tend to become autocratic because they are aware of the poor support . They either don ' t care about the support or can ' t develop it . Some of the misleaders love ' status-quo ' and resist the change due to the fear of losing power . who never get acceptance from the team . They tend to become autocratic because they are aware of the poor support . They either don ' t care about the support or can ' t develop it . Some of the misleaders love ' status-quo ' and resist the change due to the fear of losing power . Others push the team in the direction which suits their interest but the team is reluctant to pursue that goal .
Misleaders rise to the power position either by inheritance or due to special situations . Their only skill is to be at the right place at the right time . They exploit the situation , manipulate the team and also force themselves on people . Misleaders are the beneficiaries of antiincubency wave , when people have to choose between the devil and deep sea , bad and less bad .
How do mis-leaders grab the power ? Misleaders come from different backgrounds . They can either be elevated from within the organization or appointed because of their inheritance or hired from outside . Irrespective of their induction their orientation is the same . Leadership vacuum helps mis-leaders to grab the power . They are chosen by the process of elimination .
Most of the organizations don ' t have a succession plan in place . It becomes a breeding ground for misleaders and quasi-leaders who start aspiring for the top slot .
Founding fathers of the organization are great leaders . They set great examples of exemplary leadership . But they tend
82 MAL41 / 21 ISSUE