If I’m brought in to lead an organization that’s at the pinnacle of what it’s doing, the last thing I would want to do is try something new when I clearly have a point to prove or two.
So, naturally, my focus would be on finding what’s working and double down on that. And anything that’s new unproven and comes with a lot of uncertainty or feels like a gamble (as all innovative initiatives are), would have to wait — at least until the next quarter (or the next year) so can maximize profits from what’s already working.
If there’s some resistance, and there will be, I would resort to putting some discipline and order to remind them who’s the boss.
And I get it — for Macdonald, betting on new technology (a bold commitment to the computer revolution) felt risky. So he took the conservative route and put the “computer program” on pause while focusing on squeezing record profits from the older, established accounting machines.
His perspective was that it’s just a ”temporary measure” to boost quarterly earnings. But what he missed was knowing that one cannot temporarily pause innovation in the middle of a technological revolution.
As a leader, I don’t think he felt supported (given what he was trying to achieve, that may have been understandable) in carrying out his objectives.
What I’ve observed is that dictatorial leaders often suffer from an overwhelming, anxious sense of personal responsibility, which manifests as an almost pathological dread of losing control. Because they sit at the top, they feel that the ultimate fate of the company rests entirely on their shoulders.
And when the stakes are that high, delegating power feels like an unacceptable risk because they are the ones who will ultimately be held responsible if things fail. They convince themselves that no one else is capable or cares as much as they do.
I also think that emotionally, Macdonald lacked the basic humility and modesty that define the most enduring leaders. He was completely missing the inner security required to trust others, which made him unable to hand over authority, tolerate mistakes, or allow his employees to experiment.
Because he lacked this emotional foundation, he was incapable of building a self-sustaining “culture of discipline” capable of surviving his eventual departure. Instead, his deep insecurity forced him to rely entirely on his abrasive need to “prove he’s the boss every day” through sheer force of personality.
Unfortunately, this fear-based approach was validated by the powerful incentive of short-term financial metrics, which sealed the company’s fate long before Macdonald walked out the door.