Top Dog
In his 2007 bestseller 'The No A--hole Rule,' Stanford professor Robert Sutton explained the true cost of bad apples in the workplace. Now 'Good Boss, Bad Boss' puts the focus on managers, who set the office tone—for better or worse.
bobsutton.typepad.com
With unemployment near 10 percent, have employers been able to weed out jerks?
If anything, I think the workplace has gotten meaner. Think of what makes employees grouchy: low job security, cost cutting, little upward mobility. The recession has magnified all of these things.
You describe common pitfalls for executives. What went wrong with BP’s Tony Hayward?
As a CEO, the worst thing you can do is make statements that indicate you have no control over a situation. Tony Hayward did that constantly. He also refused to take any blame for anything.
Photos: CEOs Behaving Badly (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)
Is it harder to be a good boss since the Great Recession?
Money disguises a bunch of evils, and when a company is in the red, there’s more pressure on the manager. That said, there’s an opportunity for great bosses to emerge. Employees recognize leaders who can execute layoffs compassionately, or cut pay in a fair way.
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