Ego Check: Why Executive Hubris is Wrecking Companies and Careers and How to Avoid the Trap

No one executive is immune from that difficult-to-distinguish line that divides the self-confidence required of a successful CEO from the hubris seen at the root of so many corporate scandals today.  We can count Warren Buffett, Steve Jobs, Martha Stewart, and Jack Welch among the business leaders who have been infected with hubris at various stages of their careers – and seen their lives and companies suffer as a result.  Every executive is vulnerable to hubris when they become dependent on wealth, status, and other extrinsic rewards for their sense of worth; when they embark on ventures that cross beyond their capabilities; when they unduly rely on the advice and input of others to execute their vision; and when they simply assume that their plans for the future will be realized without obstacle.  Understanding these four key dynamics and the mistakes made as a result of falling prey to them will pave the road for business professionals to understand how they can guard against their own hubris while still building upon their unparalleled will to reach even greater levels of success.

No one executive is immune from that difficult-to-distinguish line that divides the self-confidence required of a successful CEO from the hubris seen at the root of so many corporate scandals today.  We can count Warren Buffett, Steve Jobs, Martha Stewart, and Jack Welch among the business leaders who have been infected with hubris at various stages of their careers – and seen their lives and companies suffer as a result.  Every executive is vulnerable to hubris when they become dependent on wealth, status, and other extrinsic rewards for their sense of worth; when they embark on ventures that cross beyond their capabilities; when they unduly rely on the advice and input of others to execute their vision; and when they simply assume that their plans for the future will be realized without obstacle.  Understanding these four key dynamics and the mistakes made as a result of falling prey to them will pave the road for business professionals to understand how they can guard against their own hubris while still building upon their unparalleled will to reach even greater levels of success.

Matthew Hayward started his career at Accenture and has worked as an investment banker with UBS Warburg and as a venture capital investor with AusAsean Ventures.  He left the corporate world for academia in 1992 to pursue a PhD in organizations and strategy at Columbia University.  Since 2003, he has been an assistant professor at Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado.  He is considered among the leading academic researchers on hubris, with work published in top tier academic outlets.  He also consults with companies such as Dell, Ericsson, Intel, and Pearson on leadership and management issues.