Matt Nixon - Pariahs: Hubris, Reputation and Organisational Crises

Pariahs: Hubris, reputation and organisational crises

Matt Nixon

Imprint

First published in 2016 by Libri Publishing

Copyright Matt Nixon

The right of Matt Nixon to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.

ISBN: 978-1-909818-86-6Epub

978-1-909818-87-3Mobi

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright holder for which application should be addressed in the first instance to the publishers. No liability shall be attached to the author, the copyright holder or the publishers for loss or damage of any nature suffered as a result of reliance on the reproduction of any of the contents of this publication or any errors or omissions in its contents.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from The British Library

Cover and design by Carnegie Publishing

Printed in the UK by Short Run Press

Libri Publishing

Brunel House

Volunteer Way

Faringdon

Oxfordshire

SN7 7YR

Tel: +44 (0)845 873 3837

www.libripublishing.co.uk

Trust in corporate institutions is on the decline yet we lack consensus as to why, much less how to respond. Most analyses are trivial, general, or both. Enter Matt Nixons Pariahs an insiders book that is informed, thoughtful, and above all, contextual. Nixon brings to bear the perspectives of an HR executive, a classicist and a consultant, all of which enlighten. While rooted in UK examples, American and other audiences will have no trouble recognizing truly global themes. We cant fix trust until we understand the problem; this is a unique and special contribution to doing so.

Charles Green, author of The Trusted Advisor

***

In Pariahs , Nixon looks at an issue we all find fascinating as long as we are mere observers: organizations which become outcasts. Writing in clear flowing prose, he draws on ancient history and current examples to take us beyond the headlines. A great book!

Christian Stadler, Professor of Strategic Management,
Warwick Business School

***

Nothing changes unless behaviour changes. We know that to be true. The behaviour, and ultimately the performance, of every institution on earth is determined by the behaviours of individuals. But Nixon has dissected this reality and examined not only the behaviour but the psychoses and neuroses that lie deep inside any human system. With compelling clarity he has drawn a red thread between an excess of ego, the resulting manifestation of that in large organisations and the truly awesome implications for organisations and the societies that they serve.

Colin Price, Global Managing Partner,
Leadership Consulting Heidrick and Struggles

***

Matt Nixon asks unusual and intriguing questions on how the flouting of social norms can lead organisations to pariah status if you feel your organisation is teetering on the brink of pariahdom, seize this book and act on the recommendations.

Naomi Stanford, Organisation Design Consultant and
author of the Economist s Guide to Organisation Design and
Organisation Culture

***

This book covers really important topics. Its interesting how the words of our predecessors several thousand years ago are a very useful frame for addressing some of the complexity of modern business life. Anyone who has been touched by the changing waves of corporate activity or is in a job where they are likely to be should read Pariahs .

Barnaby Briggs, MD Plexitas Consulting,
former Head of Social Performance, Royal Dutch Shell

***

In Pariahs , Matt Nixon provides both diagnostics and treatment advice for a fatal disease in the corporate world systemic culture failure. With skill and sensitivity, he peels back the layers of the behavioural breakdowns that lead to such failure often a combination of weaknesses in culture, governance, structure and process. At the Pariah stage, the sight of a corporations innards isnt pretty; but for a leadership team which has recognized the need to act, Nixon shows the way to a lasting cure. A timely leadership book for our turbulent and fragmented era, in which an honestly lived corporate purpose is more vital than ever.

Bjrn Edlund, former Head of Corporate Communications at Royal Dutch Shell plc, ABB Ltd and Sandoz AG

***

Pariahs is one of those books with the strength to convert the unconverted. For business leaders that already understand that ethics, sensitivity and sustainability are winning qualities of 21 st -century companies, Matt Nixons Pariahs is a guide that will strengthen their resolve. However, for the majority of CEOs that opt for egocentric styles of leadership over the health of the wider system in which they operate, Nixons analysis of corporate reputation costs, as well as opportunities for change, will be an eye-opener difficult to ignore.

Alejandro Litovsky, Founder/CEO, Earth Security Group

***

Pariahs reads as well as Dantes Cycles of Hell and yet offers hope. Matt Nixons convincing account shows how greed, exploitation and tyranny cannot be sustainable and how they will meet their inevitable downfall. It shows how high-flying, derailing CEOs and corporates like real pariahs, proprietors of the soil become the disinherited sons of the earth; until and unless with time and endless frustration, they may rise again, sustainably. Nixons account illustrates the enormous costs of such vicious Pariah cycles. This book is a healthy warning to all industry.

Professor Erik de Haan, author of The Leadership Shadow ,
Ashridge Business School

***

Matt Nixon offers a compelling analysis of the life cycle of a firm from success to hubris and then to disaster. This lively text, full of stunning examples, pictures for the reader the constant draw to hubris for people and organisations from classical antiquity through to the present day. A fantastic book from a thoughtful corporate insider.

Professor John Thanassoulis, Warwick Business School,
University of Warwick

***

This book is a compelling read for both business and human resource leaders who want to question and understand how to influence the reputation and culture of their company. The insights from Matt, based on his first-hand experiences and broader observations, provide unique insights into the fragility of an organisations reputation and a framework for deciding on relevant interventions.

Geraldine Haley, Global Head of Executive Talent,
Standard Chartered Bank

To my family

Contents

T his book could never have been written without the dual privileges of time and resources that enabled me to reflect, focus and write. I am therefore very grateful for the long sabbatical in 2014 during which most of the writing was completed. The unmatched resources and staff of the London Library were also critical to getting the necessary research and writing completed. All authors should have such conditions to work in!

Some of the core ideas of the book owe their origins to my education as a classicist, and discussions or debates about the meaning of hubris decades ago with my classics teachers: the late Peter Croft in York, David Miller in Bristol, and subsequently my tutor, Richard Rutherford, at Christ Church, Oxford. Studying Greek and Roman thought left me with deep-seated habits in my thinking that have proved invaluable most of the time, at least where wider thinking, thoroughness, accuracy and compassion have been valued. There was a long hiatus after these early studies until the period when I started to have real, live conversations with consulting clients, and later colleagues in Shell and Barclays, about the impact of power on individual and corporate decision making. I am particularly grateful to the many thoughtful and challenging individuals I worked with over a decade in both firms where I was an executive, particularly to the four CEOs I worked with directly (Jeroen van der Veer and Peter Voser at RDS, Bob Diamond and Antony Jenkins at Barclays) and senior leaders in their executive teams, from whom I learned every day as they handled extremely difficult challenges and tradeoffs. At Shell, I was particularly fortunate to work in a very able and thoughtful HR and OE team: my thanks to all of them for what they taught me about my own leadership (and its many failings and limitations!). Special thanks to Roxanne Decyk, Hugh Mitchell, Bjrn Edlund, Harry Brekelmans, Jeremy Bentham, Garmt Louw, Nick Putnam, Vincent Docherty, Ian Jones, Jim Tebbe and many others too numerous to mention in countries around the world. At Barclays, many thanks to Richard Haworth, Matt Hammerstein, David Wheldon, Lawrence Dickinson, Mike Aldred, Stephen Whitehead, Jon Harding and Mark Burton. Im also grateful to Anthony Salz and all those involved in the Salz Report, and to the teams running the subsequent culture change efforts for sharing concerns and practical issues as we negotiated some very difficult moments together.