There it was. This great grey amorphic beast filling all the gaps around the boardroom table, spilling over the table and into their documents. The board themselves were tainted with its grey tones.
It was no wonder the C-level team believed they “managed” the board.
The elephant hunter was called in to deal with it. But first he had to put some form to this shapeless creature. Otherwise he’d kill the beast as well as the board, and that would damage the entire company.
So he watched from a respectful distance, close enough to allow the beast show itself.
Here’s what he saw:
- Detachment from reality
- Lack of care about how things really worked in the business
- Focus on compliance and “arse-covering”
- Last minute updating before the next meeting
- Focus on networking for the next board position
- Inability to hold anyone to account
- Egos that added zero value
There were wisps of other unsavoury traits, like personal agendas, personality disputes, dinosaur attitudes and adherence to convention.
With the beast now fully formed and clearly in his sights, the elephant hunter loaded the precise dose of tranquiliser into his very accurate and powerful gun.
With an expert squeeze of the finely adjusted trigger, the tranquiliser dart penetrated the thick hide of the elephant without harm or pain.
One month later, the board was refreshed and free of the beast. There had been only two director replacements, respectfully and honourably executed.
Six months later the company stock was holding firm in a declining market. The executive team was fully engaged and committed to the success of the business. So were the employees.
A journalist asked the hunter “What happened?” The hunter replied “It’s not about what. It’s all about why and how.” He departed to his next assignment.
The journalist’s editor asked her what she had learned. “That the elephant in the boardroom was the culture of the board.”
