Derailment Factors That Lead to Leadership Failure
Liberty University
AVIA 245 Aviation Leadership
Professor: Jim Molloy
2022
Effective leadership involves establishing a clear vision, setting goals and motivating employees to
achieve them. Though it is human nature to make some mistakes in the course of leadership,
understanding common factors that derail quality leaders can help you protect against failures that
significantly harm your business.
Unethical Choices
1. Few things derail a leader faster than bad ethical choices. To effectively lead, you need the trust
of those that follow you. When leaders lie, cheat and steal for personal benefit, it is hard for them to
inspire others to follow them toward organizational objectives. Similarly, when leaders make business
decisions that compromise the ethics of the company, employees, customers and other stakeholders
can lose faith in the overall direction of the company.
Poor Delegation
1. Being an effective leader doesn't necessarily mean you make all decisions independently, or
complete all important tasks yourself. In fact, top leaders usually delegate tasks to employees best
equipped to perform them, and follow-up on progress. If you fail to delegate, you may see low morale
among the workforce based on lack of input. Micromanaging workers as they complete their
assignments also can quash morale and create a sense of distrust.
Poor Coaching Abilities
1. Employee development is an important factor in long-term business success. This means that
you hire, mentor, coach and train workers to reach their optimum performance potential. When you fail
in any of these facets, you typically experience leadership failure. In competitive industries, failure to
develop your workforce can cause you to lag behind competitors that continually upgrade their internal
skills and knowledge base. Employees also regularly desire to grow in an organization, and a lack of
coaching and development can further strain your management-employee relationships.
Limited Adaptability
1. Adaptability means that you can effectively respond to changing circumstances and
environmental factors. A leader needs this skill to manage business decisions, as well as varying
personality types. Inability to adapt ultimately can cause a manager to experience burnout. Making
swift, spontaneous decisions in reaction to evolving trends isn't the same as adapting proactively with
strategies and logical decision-making. A manager who simply goes back-and-forth on a daily basis can
frustrate employees and create worker fatigue.
