Running head: LEADERSHIP FAILURE ANALYSIS

Leadership Failure Analysis

Irene Ziemba
Seattle University
STML 5610: Transformational Leadership
Dr. Sharon Callahan
30 May 2015

LEADERSHIP FAILURE ANALYSIS

During my time as an Admissions Counselor and Campus Visit Coordinator at The

Evergreen State Colleges Office of Admissions I hoped to make significant changes to the
campus visit program, but failed in my attempts to truly reimagine and adapt the program to the
campuss changing needs. I entered a fractured office culture, which was under a lot of pressure
due to declining enrollment and significant staff turnover, and the culture of my office ultimately
contributed to my own failures in leading the adaptive change I would have liked to within my
program. Throughout the process of analyzing my case using the tools provided by Heifetz,
Grashow, and Linsky, Block, and Jackson, I have been able to see my case in a new light. My
initial thoughts about my leadership failure focused largely on how the culture and structure of
my office undermined my good intentions and motivation to complete projects and spearhead
change. After reflecting on my case throughout the quarter, I have been able to identify a variety
of ways I could have used my own skills, influence, and resources to better achieve the change I
wanted to create, and be the type of leader and professional I hope to be moving forward.
Case Background
My position at Evergreen included managing sixteen student staff members, and
providing the vision and training for the campus visit program in general. I came into the
position excited and passionate about the work I was to do, and about the positive effect I could
have on the college and the visit program. The existing visit program had a lot of room for
growth and problems with structure and staff morale that had built up over the past few years.
While I came into the position hoping to make significant changes within the structure of the
program, I found myself quickly adjusting to the status quo of the office. This culture
emphasized individual responsibility for maintaining current structures and working harder
without thinking strategically about what adaptive change may be necessary, and I eventually

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relied on making current practices work instead of advocating for positive change and
innovation.
I also felt a lack of support from my coworkers and supervisors, and this contributed to
my own lack of motivation to focus on change and possibility. The office dynamic which left
everyone to take care of their responsibilities, without much collaboration and teamwork and
without much guidance from supervisors, left me feeling unsupported and unable to be a truly
supportive force as a supervisor for my own staff. While I had hoped to be a strong, supportive
supervisor and leader for my student employees, I began to retreat into my own work instead of
being a present supervisor for my staff. I was motivated primarily by my own self-interest and
making sure the program ran without too many problems or conflicts, and I tended to give
attention to employees only when problems came up. In this way, my own behavior modeled that
of my supervisors, and upheld the culture of my office.
My experiences at Evergreen have shown me how easy it is to get entrenched in an
existing organizational culture, regardless of the good intentions one comes into a situation with.
While my vision and goals were positive and lofty at first, my experience of being a part of a
dysfunctional team without a supportive leader stifled my own motivation to be the type of
leader I wanted to be. I allowed the culture in my organization to perpetuate a harmful cycle of
creating the same failures of leadership not focusing on the possibilities of adaptive change and
not being a leader that helps motivate and support others at many levels in the organization.
Balcony View
Heifetz, Grashow and Linsky argue that it is important to take a balcony view of any
organization, because to diagnose a system or yourself while in the midst of action requires the
ability to achieve some distance from those on-the-ground events (pg. 7). During my time at

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Evergreen I believe that I failed to appropriately take a balcony view of the organization and
really get perspective on how the office as a whole functioned. Because of this I had a shortsighted view of the office and my place within it. After being encouraged to take a look at my
experience at Evergreen from a balcony perspective, I believe that I have been able to gain a
clearer view of [my] companys structures, culture, and defaults (its habitual ways of responding
to problems), as Heifetz, et al. described (pg. 49). Analyzing Evergreens Office of Admissions
from the balcony, it is easy to see that I was not the only staff member who felt unsupported,
isolated, and frustrated. The staffing model was very unbalanced between those with formal
authority and power to make large scale changes, and those without it, and the relationships
between authority figures and admissions counselors fostered an isolating culture which
discouraged large scale adaptive change.
The office only had two members with a large amount of formal authority the Director
of Admissions, and the Associate Director of Admissions. All other employees were recent
college graduates who served as Admissions Counselors, and had power only over their
particular programs and territories. Because there were only two supervisors and authority
figures for a staff of ten admissions counselors, the directors were overworked, stressed, and did
not have the time or attention to devote to individual employees or thinking about adaptive
changes. The office was so overworked that the directors barely had time to do their own jobs, so
any ideas for innovation that counselors came up with went largely ignored. While the
counselors were those who did most of the actual program management and recruitment work,
and saw a variety of ways that our work could be improved, our ideas were rarely heard or
valued because of bottom-heavy staffing structure, and overworked nature of the office.

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While I certainly felt unheard and isolated during my time at Evergreen, the balcony view
has also given me insight into the difficult situations the other staff members must have found
themselves in. The directors had so much pressure on them from senior staff members in the
college, and were not equipped with the time or staffing structure to truly do their work well or
be supportive supervisors. In addition, the other admissions counselors, who I often felt isolated
from due to the fact that my job was different from everyone elses, must also have been feeling
the isolation and frustration that I felt as well. I heard them complain about structures and things
they would like to change on many occasions, but the changes they hoped for didnt manifest
during my time there. While I felt frustrated and alone during my time at Evergreen, viewing my
office from the balcony has allowed me to identify that I was not the only employee feeling
frustrated, alone, and powerless. If I had been able to identify the limitations of each of my
coworkers situations, as well as my own, I could have used my own leadership skills to
collaborate with others to advocate for adaptive change within the organization, instead of
withdrawing and isolating myself further.
Acting Politically
I believe that if I had utilized some of the tools that Heifetz et al. describe around leading
adaptive change and acting politically, I could have advocated better for the changes I wanted to
make, and supported my colleagues and staff better in changes they would have liked to see as
well. The first principle that would have really helped my work would have been to identify
allies within my organization in order to build support for myself and the initiatives for change I
hoped to make. Heifetz et al. describe potential allies as those who have interests and
perspectives of the adaptive challenge closely aligned with yours and will gain the most if your

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intervention succeeds (pg. 137). At Evergreen, the other admissions counselors would have
made strong allies for me in my attempts to change the campus visit program.
The program I inherited had many problems, including student staff members who were
often late or missed shifts, meaning admissions counselors would have to cover tours, and a class
visit structure that meant that counselors sometimes had to figure out class replacements at the
last minute. This was frustrating for the busy counselors, and it would have been incredibly
helpful for the all the counselors if the program developed to the point where these structural
problems didnt affect their daily routines and responsibilities. Soon after joining the office, I
should have made a plan to address many of these issues, and presented my plans and outcomes
to the other counselors in order to gain their support. If I had done this, I could have shown them
that I wanted to make changes to benefit the whole office, and could have had their support when
I attempted to leverage support for my changes from the directors. Instead, I did not attempt
early on to get the counselors support, and the problems of the visit program that affected their
days made them angry at me, isolated me in the office, and caused me to retreat into myself. This
led me to feeling alone in trying to advocate for changes, when I could have had the support of
my coworkers.
Another important concept from Heifetz et al. that could have strengthened my leadership
at Evergreen are their steps for expanding your informal authority as a leader. The first step,
which ties into finding allies for yourself, is to strengthen your relationships (pg. 135). This
would have been an important step for me in order to gain the support of my coworkers, as I
expanded on above. If I had focused on building my relationships instead of giving up on them
as other counselors showed frustration towards me, I could have moved forward in the other
steps to expanding my authority with support and allies instead of feeling alone and isolated.

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Heifetz et al.s next step in expanding your formal authority is to score early wins by
solv[ing] some of the technical aspects bundled with the adaptive challenge (pg.135). During
my time at Evergreen I did make smaller technical changes to the way the visit program
functioned to make it more effective, but I did not leverage those successes into building trust
with the other admissions counselors and my supervisors. Heifetz et al. point out that building on
these small wins can help you gain credibility and trust with your colleagues, so that they will
support you more when you hope to make larger changes. If I had better communicated the
changes I made and their success I may not have felt so isolated within my office, as my
coworkers would have seen me fixing some of the problems that had affected them in the past. I
also could have gained trust through helping my colleagues advocate for changes theyd like to
see in their programs as well, following Heifetz et al.s advice to address interests unconnected
to the adaptive challenge (pg. 135).
The final important insight I gained from Heifetz et al. concerning my time at Evergreen
is their advice on managing and working with authority figures. Although I was given control
over the day-to-day running of my program, and expected to work without much support or
guidance, the two directors in my office at Evergreen held all of the power to make any
significant changes within my program. While I expressed ideas for changes, and concern for
aspects of my program that I did not feel were working, I also received noncommittal responses
from my supervisors. They told me to continue to monitor things, or that they would think about
making changes, but never followed through. Because of this I felt hopeless and ended up totally
retreating from my work relationships with them because I was so frustrated by their inaction.
Heifetz et al. recommend that rather than react by rebelling against [authority figures],
capitulating to them or avoiding them altogether, you can challenge them, negotiate with them,

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and leverage their powers in the service of adaptive change (pg. 218). If I could go back to my
time at Evergreen, instead of getting frustrated by my supervisors refusal to make changes, I
would be more strategic about advocating for changes. Because looking at my organization from
the balcony view allowed me to see that the directors did not have much time or energy to follow
up on others projects, I would have taken more ownership over what changes I would like to
see, and present them to the directors in a more tactical way. Through gaining strong
relationships with my allies the admissions counselors I could garner widespread support for
my changes, and leverage those relationships and the trust built from my smaller, tactical wins to
really gain the trust and attention of the directors. Had I been more intentional about directing
my relationships and communication with the directors, I may have had more success in the
adaptive changes I wanted to make.
Building Community
A more intentional focus on building community could have also made a significant
difference during my time as a leader at Evergreen. The organizational culture was very
fractured, focused on stress, busyness, hard work, and fixing our past mistakes. While I hoped to
be a positive force in the office, and be a supportive and positive leader for my student
employees, I ultimately became focused on making sure my own duties were fulfilled, and pulled
back from really forming connections and community within the office. I believe if I had used
some of Blocks recommendations around building community, I could have made a positive
difference in the culture within the office and for my student employees.
Block emphasizes the importance of building a restorative community, which is about
healing our woundedness in community terms, healing our fragmentation and incivility (pg.
51). This type of restorative community is one of possibility, generosity, and gifts, rather than

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one of fear, mistakes, and self-interest (pg. 178). The office at Evergreen was certainly
fragmented, with many isolated employees working hard for long hours to make up for past
failures. The office climate could have been very improved by focusing on possibilities for the
future, and making room for adaptive change, rather than focusing on trying to make up for
failures of the past.
Block defines communities as human systems given form by conversations that build
relatedness (pg. 178). Block argues that a restorative community can be created by the kinds of
conversations we initiate with each other. These conversations are the leverage point for an
alternative future. The core question that underlies each conversation is What can we create
together? (pg. 47). This idea builds naturally off of Heifetz et al.s emphasis on finding allies
and relationship building as a way to foster adaptive change and spheres of influence. Both
Heifetz et al. and Block identify that connections and community are a key to making positive
change in organizations and communities, and my office at Evergreen would have significantly
benefitted from more attention paid to building a strong, positive, forward-looking community.
I could have contributed to building a restorative community within Evergreen by
purposefully hosting the types of conversations Block advocates for asking what can we
create together? (pg. 47). By engaging my coworkers and the directors within the office in
intentional, structured conversations around what the possibilities for the visit program are, and
what new changes and structures we could create together, I believe I could have made a positive
impact on my program and the office. While I could have framed initial conversations and
gatherings are ideas and possibilities for the visit program, these conversations could have served
as a template for future gatherings around other topics if I was then able to successfully gather
support and make change.

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10

Jackson also gives important advice around community building for teams and
organizations. Jackson argues that a team is at its strongest when when each of its members
surrenders his self-interested for the greater good (pg. 20). Because of the individualistic,
fragmented nature of Evergreens office, I often felt like we were working for our own agendas,
and not working together in community to create a better culture and future for our office. If I
could re-do my time at Evergreen, I would take Jackson, Block, and Heifetz et al.s advice and
really focus on building a supportive, collaborative, positive community that focuses on the
possibilities for what could be. Jackson tries to focus [his] attention not on winning, but on
whether the players were moving together in a spirited way (pg. 21). In a similar way, I should
have tried to focus not just on getting my work done in a rote way, but making sure that I was
contributing to the team and community at large. I often retreated into myself and isolated myself
when I felt frustrated, and often closed my office door to do my work alone. If I could return to
Evergreen, I would focus on opening my literal and metaphorical office door, engaging with my
coworkers and employees, and building a community based on connection and possibility.
Lessons Learned
Processing my failures as a leader at Evergreen through the lenses of Block, Jackson, and
Heifetz et al. has been an incredibly eye-opening and rewarding experience. I learned the
importance of looking at a situation from a broader, more holistic balcony view, and was able
to use this perspective to identify what I could have done better during my time at Evergreen. In
particular, I gained a real appreciation for how important building intentional relationships and
community is in order to get productive work and change done within an organization. As I
move through my career and life, I hope to always be a leader who values the importance of

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community and contributions from all group members, and builds intentional and strong
relationships in order to have a healthy community to do work in.
The final very significant lesson I learned is the importance of distinguishing yourself
from the roles you play. Heifetz et al. argue that whatever role you are playing at any one
time does not represent all of who you are, even if it feels that way (pg. 212). I think I have
often been caught in the trap of equating peoples reactions to my work and roles with who I am
as a person, and have suffered emotionally from conflating myself with my roles. Heifetz et al.
believe that when you make a distinction between the roles you play and yourself, you gain the
emotional strength to ignore personal attacks your opponents hope will stymie your initiative
(pg. 213). This lesson would have helped me immensely at Evergreen, as I got caught up in
thinking of individuals reactions to my work as personal attacks and often felt emotionally
drained because of it. I hope to always remember this lesson as I move forward as a leader, as I
believe it will help me care for myself and move forward healthfully and intentionally as a
leader.
Finally, I hope to always remember to practice self care in my roles as a leader. With the
three hours of self care time we were given, I had lunch with friends, went to the gym, and took a
nap. The combination of these activities allowed me to rest, to feel engaged and connected to
others, and to let out stress and feel accomplished. I hope to remember that there are a variety of
ways to practice self care, and that I need a combination of them to feel balanced, rested, and
energized as a leader.

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References
Block, P. (2009). Community. The Structure of Belonging. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.
Heifetz, R. A., Grashow, A., & Linsky, M. (2009). The Practice of Adaptive Leadership. Boston,
MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Jackson, P., & Delehanty, H. (2013). Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success. New York, NY:
Penguin Books.