A Research Paper By TM George, Executive Coach, AUSTRALIA
Executive Derailment in the Workplace
A derailment Is an accident in which a train comes off the rack on which it is running. – Collins Dictionary
The fact of stopping a process from continuing in the way I was intended to (such as derailment of the peace process. – Oxford Learners Dictionary
I started at the top and worked my way down. – Orson Wells
Most large organizations have programs and strategies for identification of “high potentials” and supporting them with the resources required to actualize their potential. While many of those identified as having “high potential” may be on track with their growth trajectory, some executives who were previously rated as a high potential get overlooked for promotions were sidelined and in some cases, pushed out of the organization.
According to research by Korn Ferry, over 25% of those nominated as high-potential leaders are at high risk of derailing due to shortcomings or mismatches of traits, competencies, drivers, and experiences.
The contributing factors could be many. We have cases such as the story of John Dempsey, a highly successful former CEO of Estee Lauder whose career was derailed by a single act of reposting a meme on his Twitter account that was interpreted to be a racial slur (see the link in the reference section to the New York Times article on the topic) For many others, it could the result of certain deficiencies and competency gaps.
The purpose of my research on the topic was to build on the insights provided by various thought leaders with the feedback from senior executives who have had close associations with high-potential executives whose careers were derailed.
What is Executive Derailment?
Derailment refers to going off the track as defined by the different dictionaries.
Centre for Creative Leadership defines derailing executives as those who, after reaching the general manager level, are fired, demoted, or held on a career plateau. Right up to the point of derailment, the superiors of the derailed executives saw them as having high potential for advancement, impressive track records, and solidly established leadership positions.
According to the research paper on the topic published by McCormack, Joseph, and Abou-Amdan at Research Gate, Executive derailment refers to unexpected and unwanted changes in the trajectory of an executive career caused either by factors within the person or by organizational factors external to the person, or a combination of both, leading to loss of identity.
My Research:
I conducted a survey of around 60 senior executives from different industries and geographies (40% current or former CEO/ C Suite Executives, 40% CHRO/ Senior HR Executives, and 20% seasoned executive coaches). The survey was conducted by using Google Forms. The respondents were asked to identify the top five reasons for executive career derailers based on what they have seen during their own careers. The list of derailers from which they were asked to select the top five from the list of the following 13 derailers (mostly selected from the ones identified by Korn Ferry and Center for Creative Leadership).
- Rigidity/ Difficulty Adapting to Change
- Interpersonal Relationships
- Arrogance
- Performance Challenges/ Not Delivering Business Results
- Untrustworthiness
- Culture Fit/ Lack of Alignment with Organisation Values
- Micromanagement/ Controlling
- Not Being Strategic
- Difficulty Building a Team
- Low EQ
- Resilience/ Cracking Under Pressure
- Disorganization
- Not Taking Responsibility
In addition to listing the top 5 derailers, participants were requested to provide additional comments.
Findings:
- 80% of the participants selected Rigidity/ Difficulty Adapting to Change as a major cause for executive derailment.
- Difficulty Building a Team (54%) Not Being Strategic (49%) Performance Challenges (49%) and Low EQ (45%) were the other top four derailers selected by the participants.
- Interpersonal Relationships (44%) and Arrogance (40%) too scored relatively high compared to the rest of the derailers.
Participants Comments:
In surveys such as this, I find the comments to be far more valuable than the numerical output of the survey. Therefore, I have reproduced the comments by the participants here instead of having it as an annexure.
Comments include:
- Lack of self-awareness, and not having a respected coach to show a mirror or to discuss deep issues with, are other career derailers.
- The top derailers in my experience are lack of self and situational awareness. (EQ), not able to delegate and trust others’ capabilities, and being close-minded to new possibilities. The first sign a so-called high potential is getting derailed in a bigger role is when business results start failing. If the leader is sharp and can get the team together, then he or she can turn the results around. when they are not able to do that it is normally due to a lack of Strategic perspective, not being able to build the team, micro-management, and not being adaptable. Arrogance and interpersonal relationships – if an issue- would have shown up much earlier.
- Individuals not being able to obtain timely feedback to address blind spots is a common theme.
- In my experience, humility is a key virtue of many successful leaders I have observed. While they can be tough and decisive they create an atmosphere where employees feel included and heard. This virtue has a major positive impact as it is opposite to some of the key derailers like Low EQ, arrogance and not being able to build strong teams.
- Businesses do not prepare leaders sufficiently for advancement. Often, we promote someone to the point of incompetency versus actively preparing the person for the next step. Just because someone performs well at the current level does not mean they are ready for the next step. When this is the CEO position it can be quite devastating for the company overall.
- A shared sense of purpose and respective roles played are important.
- I could check everyone but these to me are the top reasons execs fail.
- Good secure human beings with organisation first thinking make the ideal team
- Getting blindsided by arrogance, lack of self-awareness, and passivity in situations can impede an executive’s career severely. High EQ and the ability to build a motivated team are the biggest aids in propelling one’s career.
- The reasons for career challenges could be many, but unwillingness to act on feedback is a sure prescription for derailment.
- A positive attitude aiding continued learning is critical.
- The biggest one is the perception of the leader about you. What you said in the past will be held against you. One needs to be careful. All along the way. There is no letup, ever, ever. Choosing words and the ability to hold oneself under pressure works best. A chance few words said in haste or anger, is stored forever. Hence EQ tops the list of career derailers.
- Executive Temperament – The ability to bear pressure and not lose one’s temper is a demand that most leaders fail to meet.
- Lack of real interpersonal skills
- Career growth happens when there are 2 things: you are competent & ready enough for the next higher level of work & your organization believes based on your performance you are good enough. So, it’s important to know what the deliverables of your team aligned with the corporate are & what your own unique role & deliver both: all the while developing your readiness for the next higher roles. Environmental & societal contributions are getting increasingly important & your performance & potential have to measure up to the challenges.
- True derailers are inevitably linked to behavioral issues vs cognitive abilities. A HUGE missing factor in the list is personal circumstances, especially for female leaders or trailing spouses. The list above might be a tad “derailers for men “oriented.
- Delivery of results and taking accountability are non-negotiable. The other area is the inability to resolve differences and conflicts.
- Values- personal & organizational define the character & effectiveness of a leader. Lack of it can lead to career derailment aspects, especially leadership mindsets & behaviors.
All are potential challenges. These are the ones I’ve seen most common in the process of being asked to replace specific executives as a search leader.
- Based on my experience, the ability to empathize and support your team is as important as leading and giving direction to your colleagues. These are important derailers as in the long term they show up and the organization’s leadership takes note when choosing their top leaders.
- If I were to rank these which I believe to be a telling indicator of a success profile) I would say that the top three are (1) Cultural Fit (culture has been consistent in the last three – to five years at least) the most important business strategy vacuum in the minds of CEOs and CHROs alike according to Korn Ferry research; (2) Difficulty adapting to change – this one is about alignment with existing culture/organization dynamics – in order to implement change one must first build credibility within an organization – not having that alignment or being able to flex with a new direction often results in derailment; and finally (3) failure to deliver – what matters is what gets done/accomplished.
- Authentic interest in developing people is one of the most desired traits.
- Low EQ will cover areas like Interpersonal relationships, and arrogance. Leadership and Trust go hand in hand. All roles need not require deep strategic skills.
- Career derailers become more evident at senior levels. But their emergence/salience at a particular point in time can also have to do with factors outside work.
- Of these low EQ has possibly the most impact. It causes poor interpersonal relationships, prevents colleagues and team members from sharing information, and makes you a poor leader.
- Often, I have seen that the derailers can either show up or become more evident when someone takes on a role where they have had little exposure to build a comfort level. This results often in extreme behavior to overcompensate for their discomfort or lack of proficiency.
- I have rated my detainers based on previous HiPo-rated talent then derailing. I have seen networks work in people’s favor and also derail when organizations change and pre-existing networks are broken. I could not see this stand out in the options above. Some of the above would normally have stopped people from being identified as Hipos to start with, I.e., untrustworthy or arrogant.
Other Potential Causes for Derailment
It was interesting to see that most of the participants identified rigidity and difficulty in adapting to change as the most important derailer (also features as the top-ranked derailers in research by CCL, DDI, Korn Ferry, etc). I reckon there are different dimensions to this attribute. The difficulty for some may be due to lack of self-awareness and for someone else, it could be related to deeply embedded personality traits. The key question is whether the derailment could have been avoided if the executive had provided timely coaching support. If I have to do the survey again, I would like to ask a specific question as to whether the survey participants felt that the derailment could have been avoided with timely intervention and if so, their recommendations on interventions that may have helped. From the perspective of a coach, it is important to understand and assess the situation to determine if coaching is the right intervention given the overall context.
In hindsight, I do believe it would have been good to capture a few other potential causes for derailment such as mental health challenges or challenging personal situations (such as trauma after separation, death of a near one, etc). In Australia, we have seen a few high-profile politicians leave their coveted positions due to depression. Another area I missed is the gender-related challenges. As one of the respondents pointed out, my questionnaire can be perceived to be more targeted at male executives as it did not focus on derailment due to factors such as maternity leave, family responsibilities, etc.
Overall, the feedback from the participants strongly reinforced some of the insights already provided by thought leaders around career management and the work of organizations such as KornFerry, DDI, Center for Creative Leadership, etc. Please review the material under the attached reference section for expert insights and additional details.
Participants Comments
- Lack of self-awareness, and not having a respected coach to show a mirror or to discuss deep issues with, are other career derailers.
- The top derailers in my experience are lack of self and situational awareness. (EQ), not able to delegate and trust others’ capabilities, and being close-minded to new possibilities. · The first sign a so-called high potential is getting derailed in a bigger role is when business results start failing. If the leader is sharp and can get the team together, then he or she can turn the results around. when they are not able to do that it is normally due to a lack of Strategic perspective, not being able to build the team, micro-management, and not being adaptable. Arrogance and interpersonal relationships – if an issue- would have shown up much earlier.
- Individuals not being able to obtain timely feedback to address blind spots is a common theme.
- In my experience, humility is a key virtue of many successful leaders I have observed. While they can be tough and decisive they create an atmosphere where employees feel included and heard. This virtue has a major positive impact as it is opposite to some of the key derailers like Low EQ, arrogance and not being able to build strong teams.
- Businesses do not prepare leaders sufficiently for advancement. Often, we promote someone to the point of incompetency versus actively preparing the person for the next step. Just because someone performs well at the current level does not mean they are ready for the next step. When this is the CEO position it can be quite devastating for the company overall.
- A shared sense of purpose and respective roles played are important.
- I could check everyone but these to me are the top reasons execs fail.
- Good secure human beings with organisation first thinking make the ideal team
- Getting blindsided by arrogance, lack of self-awareness, and passivity in situations can impede an executive’s career severely. High EQ and the ability to build a motivated team are the biggest aids in propelling one’s career.
- The reasons for career challenges could be many, but unwillingness to act on feedback is a sure prescription for derailment.
- A positive attitude aiding continued learning is critical.
- The biggest one is the perception of the leader about you. What you said in the past will be held against you. One needs to be careful. All along the way. There is no letup, ever, ever. Choosing words and the ability to hold oneself under pressure works best. A chance few words said in haste or anger, is stored forever. Hence EQ tops the list of career derailers.
- Executive Temperament – The ability to bear pressure and not lose one’s temper is a demand that most leaders fail to meet.
- Lack of real interpersonal skills
- Career growth happens when there are 2 things: you are competent & ready enough for the next higher level of work & your organization believes based on your performance you are good enough. So, it’s important to know what the deliverables of your team aligned with the corporate are & what your own unique role & deliver both: all the while developing your readiness for the next higher roles. Environmental & societal contributions are getting increasingly important & your performance & potential have to measure up to the challenges.
- True derailers are inevitably linked to behavioral issues vs cognitive abilities. A HUGE missing factor in the list is personal circumstances, especially for female leaders or trailing spouses. The list above might be a tad “derailers for men “oriented.
- Delivery of results and taking accountability are non-negotiable. The other area is the inability to resolve differences and conflicts.
- Values- personal & organizational define the character & effectiveness of a leader. Lack of it can lead to career derailment aspects, especially leadership mindsets & behaviors.
All are potential challenges. These are the ones I’ve seen most common in the process of being asked to replace specific executives as a search leader.
- Based on my experience, the ability to empathize and support your team is as important as leading and giving direction to your colleagues. These are important derailers as in the long term they show up and the organization’s leadership takes note when choosing their top leaders.
- If I were to rank these which I believe to be a telling indicator of a success profile) I would say that the top three are (1) Cultural Fit (culture has been consistent in the last three – to five years at least) the most important business strategy vacuum in the minds of CEOs and CHROs alike according to Korn Ferry research; (2) Difficulty adapting to change – this one is about alignment with existing culture/organization dynamics – in order to implement change one must first build credibility within an organization – not having that alignment or being able to flex with a new direction often results in derailment; and finally (3) failure to deliver – what matters is what gets done/accomplished.
- Authentic interest in developing people is one of the most desired traits.
- Low EQ will cover areas like Interpersonal relationships, and arrogance. Leadership and Trust go hand in hand. All roles need not require deep strategic skills.
- Career derailers become more evident at senior levels. But their emergence/salience at a particular point in time can also have to do with factors outside work.
- Of these low EQ has possibly the most impact. It causes poor interpersonal relationships, prevents colleagues and team members from sharing information, and makes you a poor leader.
- Often, I have seen that the derailers can either show up or become more evident when someone takes on a role where they have had little exposure to build a comfort level. This results often in extreme behavior to overcompensate for their discomfort or or lack of proficiency.
- I have rated my detainers based on previous HiPo-rated talent then derailing. I have seen networks work in people’s favor and also derail when organizations change and pre-existing networks are broken. I could not see this stand out in the options above. Some of the above would normally have stopped people from being identified as Hipos to start with, I.e., untrustworthy or arrogant.
References
Top Derailers – Centre for Creative Leadership
Difficulty adapting to change (the most frequent cause of derailment);
Difficulty building and leading a team;
Failure to deliver business results;
Lacking a broad, strategic orientation;
Problems with interpersonal relationships.
More details at:
https://www.ccl.org/articles/leading-effectively-articles/5-ways-avoid-derailing-career/
KORN FERRY – Most Common Derailers
Low self-awareness
Rigidity (not adapting to changes – process, boss, structure, etc)
Disorganization
Arrogance
Untrustworthiness
Cracking under pressure
Defensiveness/ blaming others
Not being a team player
Hearing but not listening
Poor performance.
More details at:
https://www.kfadvance.com/articles/most-common-career-derailers
Leadership derailers identified by DDI lists the following 11 derailers:
Approval Dependent-seek and need praise or reassurance from others, particularly from people higher in the organization.
Argumentative-sceptical, tense, perhaps paranoid or suspicious, focused on protecting their own interests, and likely to resist coaching and feedback.
Arrogant- overly self-assured or confident, resulting in poor listening and/or dismissal of feedback from others.
Attention Seeking-gregarious, charming, and persuasive, perhaps excessively so, which can result in becoming melodramatic and self-promoting.
Avoidant-while seemingly pleasant and cooperative, tend to be preoccupied with their own agendas and may prefer to address issues covertly (avoiding more direct solutions), thus being perceived as procrastinators, manipulative, or stubborn.
Eccentric-creative and, accordingly, different from others, perhaps to the point of being unorthodox or even odd.
Imperceptive naturally inclined to read others´ behavior, intent, and motivations.
Impulsive- impatient, unpredictable, and inclined to act before considering the consequences of actions.
 Perfectionistic-micro-managers, controlling, and demanding of others.
Risk Averse-indecisive, too deliberate, or reluctant to take unusual or unconventional actions due to overemphasis on the prospect of failure.
Volatile-have difficulty controlling their emotions, and are perhaps moody and quick to erupt in anger
More details at:
https://www.hr.com/en/communities/leadership/ddi-insight–executive-derailers-when-leaders-go-o_eacx1ns9.html
Other Reference Material:
NY Times article on Estee Lauder CEO, John Demsey’s career derailment.
Forbes Article on 5 behaviors that derail executive careers
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kimberlywhitler/2016/10/02/the-5-behaviors-that-derail-executive-careers/?sh=1fde644d4e51
LinkedIn article by Jacqueline Brodnitzki (PCC) on early signs of derailment