LEARNING JOURNAL (Session 14,15)

STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

Submitted by:
C K ANAND
Roll No. 010
PGDM-EM
Dated -30.10.2019

Mount Everest (2nd Day Discussion)

• What caused the catastrophe in 1996?

Three factors that led to the Catastrophe which happened in Mount Everest in 1996.
• (A)Organizational Factors-
Planning (contingency)- you need to keep things in surplus,
Structure (communication problem/breakdown)
Rules – there were no sacrosanct rule (as the descending time was told 1pm or 2pm..as it
was suicidal to stay after 2pm)
Resources- No backup or slack
Logistics, Hierarchy
Role- As a leader you should know what is your role --- (what to do and what not to do) as
crises happens we do what was not supposed to be done --- (both Fischer and Rob did
what was not supposed to be done)
• (B) Individual Decision making Bias-
Sunk Cost Bias- People get attached to sunk cost so much that they could not get rid of the
thought from their minds and commit mistakes in decision making.
Over-Confidence- Recognize the signals, take a pause and sit back and decide, and if you
just ignore that signal (also called signals of dislikes) that is where the thin line between
confidence and over-confidence lies.
Recency Bias- Action/Decision based on the recent experience without considering the
long term data or other possibilities ---( just because 4 years was safe on 2nd week of May
that doesn’t mean it will be safe this year also…that is where Rob made the mistake)
• (C) Leadership & Team-
Leadership ---- A good leader is a great follower of the follower. He follows the dreams of
his followers and helps in achieving them.
Role—if leader has to chase the dreams of many, than he/she has to be fit for that ----
(Physical, Mental, Social)
• Escalating commitment- People become increasingly committed towards a cause, when it
is a big thing and they make announcements in public. In case of failure, they fear that
they might lose their face (this was the case of Hanson)
• Teams can be categorized into three types based on the interdependencies on each
other
a. Pooled interdependencies. Ex- Cricket (One person success doesn’t guarantee other
persons success but ones failure can hurt others success)
b. Reciprocal interdependencies. Ex- Football (Reciprocated contribution to each other in
a team
c. Sequential interdependencies. Ex- Relay ( Your end result is my starting point)
• In the case of Everest, it was seen that the teams were of Pooled type. Each of the persons
required support from others to make the expedition successful.
• TEAM Vs GROUP
A Team is a web of relationships, and to build the relationship between the members of
the team, there should be a balance between contribution of members.
Value Add =================== Value Draw
Suppose to add value through
a. Physical (Money, strength, physical support)
b. Mind (Ideas, observation, insights)
c. Heart (Feelings, emotions, empathy etc.)
When there is an imbalance between the value added and drawn in any of the three
types, then the relationships start deteriorating between the members, or it can never
build.
• In case of uncertainties and high-risk environments, contribution of mind becomes
important. Higher the uncertainty, higher the need of mind related value addition and
value draw. But in reality, whenever a crisis, first reaction comes from emotions (from
heart), then it hits the mind for logical evaluation. That is why people say that instant
reaction to a crisis situation must be avoided.
• In this case, people never shared their mind, their observations and ideas
Due to fear- (That we don’t know how the other person will react)
Due to futility- (They might feel it is futile to share) –(that’s why people did not had team
word and it lead to catastrophe)--- people didn’t talk to Rob but discussed among them
self about the weather condition as Rob was too authoritative initially (he said his word is
rule up there).
The importance of sharing the observations and feelings is, it will give a window to look
at the signals of caution, and to act cautiously.
• Roles were assigned but not followed by the Sherpa, which led to delays for 2 hours as
rope was missing. He was supposed to be forward with rope but was tied with Sandy and
was at the last--- He ended up doing something which was not supposed to be done.