I was watching an Air Crash Investigation documentary over YouTube, which so starkly brought to attention the importance of maintaining effective Leadership and respect in the cockpit. AirBlue Flight 202, from Karachi to Islamabad crashed on 28 July 2010, killing all 146 passengers and crew on board. A tragic disaster, indeed but something that could have been clearly avoided.
The accident was accredited mainly to Captain Pervez Iqbal Chaudhry due to his arrogance as he significantly deviated from established procedures when approaching Islamabad airport. At one point, he could be heard laughing off the order of the Air Traffic Controller to enter a holding pattern and to wait for the weather to improve, as the weather at Islamabad was drenched with rain at that time. He was equally dismissive of his First Officer (FO), a former fighter pilot who had over 1 800 hours of flying experience.
During the initial phase of the flight, Capt Chaudhry berated his co-pilot, humiliating him in a “harsh, snobbish” tone. This apparently lasted for about one hour to a point when the First Officer became quiet and submissive, having lost his self-esteem enabling Capt Chaudhry to freely do any violations from standard procedures without any suggestions or corrective actions from his less experienced co-pilot. As a result, the FO just gave lost confidence in his own ability and became fearful, contributing to this needless accident.
Thankfully, most of us may not be experiencing such adverse effects of poor leadership but when toxic leaders diminish the self-esteem of co-workers and team, they unwittingly place their organizations in danger.
Organizations spent hundreds of thousands on a yearly basis conducting Employee Engagement Surveys only to find that on an average about 35% or less are truly engaged and the rest at different stages of disengagement. In order to “re-engage” staff, enlightened organizations present the results and have open discussions with staff as to the possible action plans. Yet, many are so jaded of going through this exercise that they just go through the motion with the believe that nothing will ever change.
There is therefore a need to “Restore Engagement”™. Some organizations
do this by having frequent and targeted Town Halls, while others use Reverse Mentoring very effectively. Reverse Mentoring has many positives, including establish a culture of respect and learning from fellow workers. What other effective Employee Engagement have you noticed.
