Allan, that’s hysterical. And sad. And happens every day in almost every large organization around the world to some extent.
I’m betting you’re an INTJ, or maybe an ENTJ. Bullshit does not compute.
I, also, am sensitive to this issue from personal experience. I worked in private equity and M&A for another firm before I left to start my own company several years back. I was so fed up with the crap that I wrote a letter to the two senior partners explaining what I thought we were doing wrong (that is, almost every deal that crossed our desks!). It went over like a turd in a punch bowl. While we “controlled” our portfolio companies, the real gravy was in the fees generated from deals (that is, we rationalized and shoved deals down the companies’ throats in order to earn the fees – well, in my view anyway). Anyhow, I’m quite sure they would have eventually fired me had I not left first, as I was not a Team Player.
But, as they say, living well is the best revenge. The stocks of the three publicly-traded companies that this firm controls (and pillaged via deals) are down between 80% and 90% from their peaks, far worse than their bogeys. So now they’re busy explaining the history of the egg on their faces. While my little company – while not knocking any lights out – is doing fairly well more due to acts of omission (that is, avoiding mistakes) than acts of commission.
I believe it’s called… schadenfreude. Sweet schadenfreude.
But I had to live with looking like an idiot for several years. And that’s professionally painful. Most folks can’t take it. So they join the Dark Side… which is safe and conventional. Which brings us back to misalignment of incentives…
