By Jerry Bellune
Success Strategies E-Letter

When Bill Parcells coached the New York Giants, he was well known as a man with an acid tongue.

Parcells has a large frame. He looks like he might be a Marine drill instructor or a football coach, despite his baby face. His motivational style was to put down his players, calling them names and belittling them to make them show him he was wrong about them.

That kind of negative leadership may work with professional athletes who had spent most of their lives being bullied and intimidated by coaches. It does not work well in the newspaper business.

As President Abraham Lincoln observed, "If you want to test a man’s character, give him power."

Many years ago, the editor of a family-owned daily brought me in to fix several personnel problems.

At the time, an assistant editor was exercising what might best be described as a "reign of terror".

This man had been given temporary control of the staff. The authority went to his head.

That was surprising because he was no green kid suffering a case of corporal-itis. He was a veteran editor. He had spent most of his career at this newspaper and knew the staff well.

When I first arrived, this man and I went to dinner where I explained that we intended to create a less hierarchical leadership, to promote team work and a culture that encouraged initiative and risk taking.

When I asked for his assessment of the staff, he was arrogant and showed them little respect.

I considered that his attitude was driven by his disappointment that someone had been brought in over his head. But he made it clear that he was going to resist every move toward a more open leadership style.

We demoted him to a desk job where he could do little harm.

Newspaper consultant Ed Miller, who brought me in to help his troubled staff, observes that when newspaper organizations are under stress, the level of bad manners intensifies.

Research cited in the Harvard Business Review concludes that arrogance, bullying, bad manners, incivility and other negative behavior "corrodes people’s productivity, performance, motivation, creativity and helpfulness. Half of those on the receiving end will lose work time worrying about future interactions with the instigator ... and one quarter will consciously reduce their work effort. Half will contemplate changing jobs, and one in eight will actually quit to avoid the uncivil situation."

Victims feel powerless. They are afraid to complain out of fear of retaliation. They often choose the safest course — to avoid the aggressor. But the consequences can be severe.

They fear more of the same and their increased sense of powerlessness heightens their stress.

Do you have such a situation at your newspaper?

Here are some steps you can take.

1. Be alert to signs of trouble.

Author Michael Levine links the perception of crime with a neighborhood’s appearance. When people see broken windows, they conclude that the neighborhood is declining and crime rising. By cracking down on the legal equivalents of "broken windows," New York police created a climate where a commitment to lawfulness replaced tolerance of lawlessness.

We need to be alert to "broken windows" at our newspapers.

Do some supervisors play favorites?

Do some tolerate excessive absences and sloppy record keeping?

Do some rule through fearand intimidation?

2. Don’t tolerate improper behavior.

The safety record of U.S. nuclear subs is remarkable because all safety violations are punished fully regardless of the outcome. Sailors learn there is no free ride for a near miss. The act itself is punished, not the consequences.

Similarly, we will not stop improper behavior by ignoring it. Real leaders make it clear that improper behaviors will not be tolerated and will be dealt with immediately.

3. Avoid a ‘star’ system.

You must take action even if the offender is a star performer or one of your highly-placed managers. Perks and incentives should be used to reward and celebrate top performance. But you must draw the line when star performers behave inappropriately. The rules apply to all of us.

4. Be aware of you own behavior.

Once, at an executive meeting, our publisher severely chastised one of his senior executives. The other executives came to me, urging me to talk with the publisher about this.

It was inappropriate to criticize the executive in front of his peers.

With his office door closed, I told the publisher clearly but unemotionally how everyone felt about what he had done. I shared with him that they felt they might be the next victim when he pulled the trigger.

He could have responded poorly. He might have fired me. But he accepted that he was sending the wrong signal to everyone and apologized at the next meeting.

You must be alert to the impact of your actions. When you are the offender, your victims are even more defenseless. And you send a clear signal that the rest of the staff may be next on your hit list.

July’s Takeaway Thought. Never forget that there are different levels of conversation. You can kid around with your peers. But you can’t do that with subordinates any more than you can with those you report to. For more on this and other leadership strategies, you may be interested in my new book, "Lead People, Manage Things". You can read more about the book at my web site and subscribe to my free weekly newsletter, "Success Strategies" at www.JerryBellune.com.

Jerry Bellune and his family own and operate a newspaper publishing company in South Carolina. He conducts FUNshops for newspaper publishing companies and press associations. For more on leadership and best newspaper practices, go to www.JerryBellune.com.

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