state. The efficiency of suspicious organizations is hampered by their unmoti-
vated employees, lack of information exchange and paralyzed decision-makers
(de Vries 2002, pp. 85–131).- Detached personalities and organizations
The detached personality type can be seen in extremely distant managers who
are selective in the company they keep and tend to be cool and disinterested.
Managers of this type avoid social ties, isolate themselves, and have no need for
exchange with others. If managers become so distant as to no longer recognize
their own responsibilities, the management is delegated to the level just beneath
them, absolving them from authority and responsibility. The managers in the
second row become the real power players, using the vacuum at the top to lobby
for their own interests.
In turn, power struggles and political discord arise, and the implementation of
business values and aims falls by the wayside. Strategic decisions become
gambits, resulting in breaches and gaps throughout the entire organization.
This prevents effective coordination and communication. The individual players
concentrate only on themselves, and not on their business, colleagues, customers
or the market. - Depressive personalities and organizations
Every person experiences phases of dejection. Yet some regularly sink into
hopelessness and sorrow, which characterizes the depressive personality.
Depressive managers feel worthless, guilty, impotent and out-of-place, and
therefore shy away from responsibility. They seek others to make decisions for
them and then idealize these saviors. The feeling of powerlessness often
produces feelings of anger and aggression directed at one’s self.
Depressive managers are characterized by their incompetence and lack of
drive and imagination. They are passive, unsure of their actions and even fear
success, as it could spark envy in others. According to Kets de Vries the business
culture that evolves under this type of manager, is that of the “self-insecure
individual”: the organization is characterized by negativity and lethargy. In the
eyes of the depressive manager, the business is only a machine that needs
minimal attention. Depressive enterprises are very conservative, resistant to
change, and often become isolated, losing their orientation. They become locked
in their routines and unable to implement change processes. Decisions are put off
for so long that the necessary information is no longer useful, and the entire
system stagnates. - Compulsive personalities and organizations
“Obsessive-compulsive personalities often fight their way to the top. Although
they are real over-achievers in certain fields, the presence of such individuals
can tend to have brutal consequences” (de Vries 2002, p. 138). Compulsive
managers do not want to be on the same level as other persons or dependent
on events; as such, they want to control everything and everyone. They view
relationships only in terms of dominance and subordination – they are
domineering towards subordinates and practically grovel in the presence of
superiors.
2.2 The Leader 75