PRISONERS OF LEADERSHIP 141is very changeable. Consequently, the group members may fall back into
a fi ght – fl ight mode. Eventually, given the anxiety aroused by this par-
ticular culture, the group members may seek refuge in pairing as a
defense against the fi ght – fl ight environment they have created.
These distorting reaction patterns and regressive group behavior
are in fact major contributing factors to the strange, irrational behavior
we sometimes fi nd among leaders ( Jaques, 1955 ; Menzies, 1960 ). Such
reaction patterns are semi - dormant tendencies that revive easily in
crisis situations and some leaders fi nd it very hard to withstand their
pressures.
The case of Ted Howell
To illustrate how these psychological forces can affect a leader, con-
sider the following incident. As a result of the unexpected death of
his predecessor, Ted Howell was appointed president of the Larix
Corporation, a company in the electronics equipment fi eld. Howell
had been found with the help of a headhunter, who had highly rec-
ommended him. He had previously held a senior staff position in a
company in the same line of business; Howell ’ s knowledge of the
industry had been a key factor in persuading the Larix board to take
him on.
Soon after his arrival, Larix board members saw signs that Howell
was having diffi culties dealing with the pressures of the job. A
number of rash decisions made in his fi rst week at the offi ce were
the fi rst indications of trouble. But despite these mistakes, everything
initially turned out better than expected. First, one of the company ’ s
main competitors went out of business, which freed up an important
segment of the market. In addition, one of Howell ’ s employees came
up with an excellent marketing idea that he quickly adopted and that
proved very successful. Although some executives were disturbed
because their colleague never received credit for his idea, nevertheless
these two factors helped to get Larix back into the black.
Unfortunately, success went to Howell ’ s head and he embarked
on a dramatic expansion program, ignoring cautionary remarks made
by his employees, consultants, and bankers. Other steps were taken,
including the relocation of the company ’ s headquarters to what
Howell thought were more suitable surroundings and the acquisition
of an expensive company plane. These two actions put a heavy strain
on the company ’ s fi nances. Those executives who expressed disagree-
ment or concern about the new moves were fi red; consultants who