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8 LAW and ORDER I February 2015

Bad Leadership Equals Bad Results

In law enforcement, things get done when supervi-sors work effectively with other of� cers to handle incidents and accomplish various missions. Ef- fective law enforcement leaders “team up” to handle crime scenes, traf� c accidents, shootings, riots, protests, and disas- ters. All crime, and all terror events, are local in nature, at least initially, and the American law enforcement profession is so well-led that most of the law enforcement incidents in this country are well-handled. As a profession, we de� nitely need to make sure things stay that way because the potential threats to law and order grow in size and scope continually.

Are there exceptions to this general rule? Having once known a “boss” who greatly over-estimated his own leader- ship skills, I can answer that with a de� nitive “yes.” That par- ticular high-level “gold badger” manipulated his peers and subordinates through fear and the raw application of power. His motto was “divide and conquer” regardless of the nega- tive impact such an approach had on organizational morale. Unfortunately, government of� cials at the top of the political “food chain” assumed that he was a very successful and effec- tive leader and gave him a great deal of support.

I guess that is the moral of this story. “Bad” leaders can hide their ineptitude for a long time and the system will often pro- tect them. In the case that I mentioned, the “bad boss” sur- rounded himself with an inner circle of weak subordinates (guys in the roll call room called them the chief’s “privy coun- cil” and “bobble heads”) who afforded him a lot of protection and who masked many of his mistakes.

It got so bad that he even ventured out to teach “leadership” classes to community groups and law enforcement middle- managers. Eventually, the truth prevailed and this so-called “leader” was exposed for what he really was, but his negative legacy within the organization lived on for many years after his departure.

How could that be in this day and age? The government of� cials to whom This Guy reported spent a great deal of time

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“Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.” — Henry IV, William Shakespeare

Lt. Ed Sanow

ON THE JOB JUST HANDED DOWN

praising him but then gradually became aware of his weak- nesses and unfairness. Unfortunately, they had gone on record so many times about his greatness that they couldn’t publicly challenge him without embarrassing themselves. Sometimes appointed and elected of� cials become too close to the high- level key administrators they allegedly “monitor”; too many golf games, dinners, lunches, trips to conferences, etc. tend to blur the lines between over-sight and cronyism.

When the relationships grow dangerously close, it often becomes too late for the “watchers” to effectively make a dif- ference. This sends the “king” a strong message: Continue to abuse your power and exploit your personnel because we won’t step in to change anything. Public safety leadership is a complex issue indeed.

What about the impact upon the organization and the com- munity when a “leader” goes bad? In the case study mentioned above, both entities suffered during his tenure. Organizations are like apples; they can sometimes “spoil” at the top and within at the same time. When a really “bad leader” is “lead- ing” an organization, there are no winners. The quality of the protection and the service will always be reduced (sometimes substantially) because morale drops so steeply that many of- � cers “come to the plate” with an angry attitude.

There are no perfect organizations in the world because all of them are made up of imperfect people. Public safety agen- cies can greatly improve, however, if they start to look for and eliminate “bad” leadership. If that happens someday, it creates a win/win situation for all.

Chief James T. McBride (Ret), M.P.A., C.L.E.E., teaches criminal justice classes at Lakeland Community College in Kirtland, Ohio and is a special deputy with the Lake County (Ohio) Sheriff’s Of� ce. He may be reached at [email protected].

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Look for and eliminate bad leadership.

By J.T. McBride I Guest Commentator

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