Toxic Leadership Essay

Toxic Leadership By far the potentially most destructive moral and ethical issue that my organization faces is that of Toxic Leadership. This is due to the potentially devastating affect such poor leadership can have on unit morale and performance; which can diminish unit cohesion and mission effectiveness. Secondly, there is potential for other young followers to think that toxic leadership is justified; and then to create their own toxic leadership climate. This leads to leadership that is so bad that it hangs over an organization like a toxic cloud that suffocates everyone and everything that it comes in contact with (Reed, 2005).

Colonel George Reed, in his strategic research project links an entire series of eighteen personal characteristics,

These do not come to mind when most persons consider the ethical issues that their organization and its members are facing. Within my organization, however, this is a real and potentially destructive phenomenon. One need look no further that to recall the headlines regarding the death of Pvt. Danny Chen to realize the seriousness surrounding this issue. Hazing has long been considered a rite of passage for some organizations, clubs and groups. Classic well know examples might include “rush” being conduct across countless college campuses as young students seek to pledge with a fraternity. Or that first summer at West Point when the new freshman class learns the organizational norms and expectations from a select group of upperclassman. Enduring hazing is often said to build greater strength of character, and is characterized by a defined end state, or specific deration. However, bullying, of which hazing is a subset, goes far and beyond this symbolic rite of passage or group

Danny Chen, what might have begun innocently enough as a bout of hazing or a rite of passage rapidly move beyond to become a perpetual state of torment and fear, despite that fact that he spoke up and spoke out to higher local leaders for help. This serves to demonstrate that while leaders at all levels of this organization are called on to look after the proper health and welfare of all of those in their charge. Instead or in fact in some cases those local leaders are the ones conducting the bullying. For Pvt. Chen this only became apparent after his untimely death by suicide. However, his death can serve to educate us all as to the warnings and dangers of such derogatory behavior on the part of select individuals as well as on the part of key leaders within the organization. And the second and third order effects such demonstrable behavior can have on the target individual, his family and friends as well as the overall organization after the fact and once it becomes apparent to