Bad bosses can be "re-engineered"

Andrew Park writes, “Ambition, self-confidence, even a little bloodlust–all can be part of a great biz leader. They can also wreak havoc on an organization. Now, for the executive from hell, help is on the way.” This interesting article comes from the most recent issue of Fast Company.

His name is George. He’s a vice president at Cleveland’s Eaton Corp. And he’s a recovering alpha exec. It took him three years at Eaton to admit that he had a problem. It took another year for him to commit to doing something about it.

Nguyen was coached to practice deep breathing as a means of centering himself, and to reach out and forge some personal relationships at the office.

Months of professional probing and coaching later, George T. Nguyen is learning how big a jerk he has been–autocratically dispensing orders through his administrative assistant, for example–and how little loyalty he has inspired. That psychic hurdle cleared, he’s starting down the path to becoming a guy you’d actually want to hang out with–and a more effective executive. Says Nguyen now: “I have to work at this every day, every week, every month, because it’s not a natural tendency for me. I’m 45 years old. If I don’t make the change now, I won’t have the incentive to change.”

Read the rest of the story here; see the accompanying sidebar here.