Often, as in the case of Fuller’s trim tab, one will actually produce, use or encourage a rogue event that moves an organization in a direction that is opposite to that which is intended. The reaction to this event will, in turn, create a new momentum that moves the organization in the desired direction. One is reminded of the biblical tale in which the wise counselor offers to cut a child in half in order to resolve a conflict regarding custody of the child by two contending women. The horrible prospect of such an act drives at least one of the women (the true mother) in the opposite direction. She is willing to give up the child in order to spare its life. In this way, the true mother was discovered. A threatening inhumane act was averted that could have led to humanity and resolution of the conflict.
An excellent, real-life example regarding the use of leverage and rogue events in corporate life concerns the emergence of courage and honesty among a group of corporate executives in a major American financial institution. I was consulting with a senior vice president in this institution, who had a reputation among his vice-presidential subordinates for being very demanding and intimidating. The Senior Vice President knew that he was discouraging risk-taking behavior through his abrupt manner. He wanted to change this style of leadership in order to encourage more creative problem-solving on the part of his staff during a particularly turbulent transition in the life of his financial institution.
A consulting team that I led collected extensive information from his vice presidents regarding the Senior Vice President’s leadership behavior. Much of this information was quite critical of him. After reporting the information back to him (which he received quite openly), the team met at a retreat site with the Senior Vice President and all of his subordinates. The team presented an oral summation of the interview data. The immediate and highly emotional reaction of his vice -presidential reports to this presentation was an absolute and unqualified rejection of everything that the consulting team had said: “[Senior Vice President], you are a wonderful leader! How could the consultants have so grossly distorted the facts! Who hired these incompetent people!”
Members of the consulting team began to wonder if they were at the right meeting or if they had been set up. After about twenty minutes of killing-the-messenger, one of the vice presidents (who had been quiet) spoke up. He took a deep breath and then stated that “the information being presented by these people is accurate. I’ve talked with many of you in my office or in the hall about these very issues. I’m tired of beating around the bush. Let’s bring this stuff out in the open!” There was a short pause. Everyone looked at the senior vice president for his reaction. He appeared to be somewhere between neutral and appreciative of the vice president’s candor. The other vice presidents then began cautiously to state their own concerns and verify that the information contained in the oral report was accurate. The meeting was productive and tangible steps were taken to alleviate some of the personal and structural problems that this group of financial leaders faced.
The vice president who first spoke up exhibited organizational courage. The Senior Vice President also exhibited organizational courage. After all, he had contracted with the consulting team in the first place to present their critical report (without editing) to all of his vice-presidential reports. Perhaps both men were simply tired of the old way of operating. They were willing to take risks in order to change things. Perhaps both men felt sufficient job security to take a chance. Maybe I was witness to a very special kind of “roguish” organizational courage that was unexpected in this organization (or at least in this team of organizational leaders).
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