Hubris

(Photo credit - takomabibelot)

Sir Fred Goodwin the ex CEO of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is not only as proclaimed by The Times the "World's Worst Banker" ( http://tr.im/amkc) but he has brought shame and embarrassment to the proud Scottish Nation. It was a classic tale of local boy makes good - born in Paisley went to the Grammar School and then onto Glasgow University and from there he worked his way up the ladder to CEO of RBS. However in his time at the helm he managed through hubris to bring a once respected banking giant to its knees, although his own personal fortune did better, walking away with over £30 million in salary and a pension pot of upwards of £1.8 million. You can see that the recession won't affect Fred much despite being sacked from the top job. It is a phenomena that I have witnessed all to often in colleagues and in particular men, as they move up the career ladder, get to the top they suddenly start to believe their own publicity and start over-valuing their talents and benefits to the organisation. This usually leads to bad decisions as they surround themselves with "yes" colleagues, over-blown demands for remuneration and conditions, and the use of the organisation to promote them self and their importance. All to often Board of Directors and in particular non-exec members will not take arms up against this type of megalomaniacal behaviour. Often it is the individual that comes off worse, however as far as RBS is concerned it is once again the British Taxpayer that is paying not only for Sir Fred's lifestyle but also for his hubris. Where will all this end and when will these people be brought to book?