University of Minnesota - UMN Executive Leadership Insights
Lead without Blame
Book

Lead without Blame

Building Resilient Learning Teams

Diana Larsen and Tricia Broderick
Berrett-Koehler, 2022
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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Well Structured
  • Concrete Examples
  • Engaging

Recommendation

Playing the blame game or shaming workers who make mistakes doesn’t solve workplace problems, it creates them. Employees who feel accused or embarrassed become fearful and resentful – or they quit – instead of trying to solve problems. Agile expert Diana Larsen and leadership adviser Tricia Broderick provide a blame- and shame-free approach leaders can use to address issues and move people ahead without acrimony or recrimination. They explain how to put three powerful team motivators – “purpose, autonomy and a team’s shared co-intelligence” – to work. They delve into ways you can minimize conflict and power plays while fostering your team’s learning, resilience and results.

Summary

Never blame or shame your team members.

Many leaders believe that when employees make mistakes or their projects go wrong, they need to blame and shame their team to get people to improve and work extra hard to avoid future mistakes. This isn’t only wrongheaded, it’s spiteful – and it doesn’t work. 

Leaders who engage in finding fault almost always prompt self-destructive and self-defeating behavior among their teams. Be aware that when mistakes happen or a deadline is missed, some process, system or external factor could be at fault, and rather than being to blame, your team may have been striving to make the best of a thorny situation. 

When bosses blame and shame their team members, most become fearful about making new mistakes. As a result, they are overly cautious with their work, afraid to innovate or take any risks – and that’s a recipe for future trouble. When a manager accuses or embarrasses employees, they go out of their way to avoid future negative attention. This makes them unwilling to take chances or try new solutions.

Blaming and shaming damage workers...

About the Authors

Diana Larsen is a co-founder, coach, mentor and consultant at the Agile Fluency Project. Tricia Broderick is a leadership adviser and motivational speaker.

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