Often, however, the trigger is less specific. The initial impetus can be performance related, such as when an employee loses a client, undershoots a target, or misses a deadline. The syndrome usually begins surreptitiously. The executives in the second study represented a wide diversity of nationalities, industries, and personal backgrounds. The second study, involving an informal survey of about 850 senior managers attending INSEAD executive-development programs over the last three years, was done to test and refine the findings generated by the first study. The first study, which comprised surveys, interviews, and observations, involved 50 boss-subordinate pairs in four manufacturing operations in Fortune 100 companies. This article is based on two studies designed to understand better the causal relationship between leadership style and subordinate performance-in other words, to explore how bosses and subordinates mutually influence each other’s behavior. The result is that they often end up leaving the organization-either of their own volition or not. It describes a dynamic in which employees perceived to be mediocre or weak performers live down to the low expectations their managers have for them. If the Pygmalion effect describes the dynamic in which an individual lives up to great expectations, the set-up-to-fail syndrome explains the opposite.
(See the insert “About the Research.”) How? By creating and reinforcing a dynamic that essentially sets up perceived underperformers to fail. In fact, our research strongly suggests that bosses-albeit accidentally and usually with the best intentions-are often complicit in an employee’s lack of success. Perhaps “blamed” is too strong a word, but it is directionally correct. But sometimes-and we would venture to say often-an employee’s poor performance can be blamed largely on his boss. Some employees are not up to their assigned tasks and never will be, for lack of knowledge, skill, or simple desire. Whatever the reason, the problem is assumed to be the employee’s fault-and the employee’s responsibility.īut is it? Sometimes, of course, the answer is yes. Or the employee isn’t driven to succeed, can’t set priorities, or won’t take direction. The employee doesn’t understand the work, a manager might contend.
When an employee fails-or even just performs poorly-managers typically do not blame themselves.
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