Courtesy of http://www.imdb.com/media/rm281512192/ch0199483
Bad Leaders are Good Entertainment
Many TV comedies are popular for their portrayal of bad leadership. Although fictional, viewers are pulled in to see what these characters will do next — especially when these bad leaders find success despite themselves. Michael Scott from The Office comes to mind, as well as Selina Meyer from Veep. In the study of effective leadership, it is useful and fun to examine them and draw upon their mistakes to identify best practice (or in this case, worst practice). For me, the one that stands out is Mallory Archer from Archer. Here is a light-hearted look at a truly bad leader.
Context
In the animated TV show Archer, Mallory Archer (played very well by actress Jessica Walter) is the founder and leader of the International Secret Intelligence Service (ISIS). She is also the mother and boss of lead character Sterling Archer – the top international spy agent of the world. Mallory has been in the spy game for years, well before becoming a mom or company owner. Unfortunately she is a self-serving, egotistical alcoholic who puts her son, employees and company at constant risk. (imdb, 2014) While her international network of friends and enemies is extensive, Mallory’s selfish motives are detrimental to ISIS. She will use her son and staff as decoys while secretly pilfering millions from rival agencies and hostile governments. All the while the reputation of ISIS continues to crumble….
Traits
It’s not surprising that Mallory Archer’s neuroticism is a detriment to her leadership abilities. While being emotionally unstable and prone to angry outbursts, her staff have little faith and often act to undermine her decisions. However, she is attractive, a high-society elite, presentable in civilized social settings. These traits allow her to wedge herself among the powerful and important figures of the world, and bring more business to ISIS. (imdb, 2014)
Style
Mallory Archer maintains her control and authority over the staff at ISIS. She is not too concerned with being sensitive or agreeable to her employees but would rather meddle in the world’s affairs instead of building strong relationships. In some ways, she is effective: she plans assignments well, sends her staff into a situation with tact, and outlines the ultimate goal along the way. However, she micro-manages her staff and publicly belittles them whenever she feels like it. Mallory acts as if she doesn’t care for their safety or welfare (even her son) – constantly wondering aloud why she even keeps them employed with her money. The dark humor of the show is that she is a horrible mother (her son was raised by his butler who is still his companion) and treats all her subordinates like ungrateful children.
Power
Mallory Archer seeks power and exerts it liberally to get things done at ISIS. Considering the five classic types as introduced by French and Raven (Northouse, 2013), she certainly uses reward, coercive and legitimate power. Mallory is the rich owner of ISIS and pays rewards handsomely for the completion of assignments. She also takes away pay and incentives at will and hand-picks who will work and when. Essentially she’s the boss – what she says goes.
As for the other two power types – expert and referent – she has little influence with these. Even as an experienced spy, no one on her staff looks up to her for her expertise. In fact, her son Sterling became a top spy agent with an even larger ego and greater neuroticism. With all the in-fighting and shenanigans, most employees want to be like Sterling Archer, not Mallory.
Takeaways
So in light of all this, my recommendation for her leadership to be more effective is to approach it with a more Transformational Leadership style. This is the type that is characterized by a leader who holds and expresses a vision of what the future can be – in this instance: a world rid of evil and where justice is served. Mallory could adopt the four basic behaviors of idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. (Northouse, 2013) Possible suggestions:
Idealized Influence – be a great role model, lead by example, adjust her attitude so others can identify with her.
Inspirational Motivation – provide challenging assignments that support the greater good.
Intellectual Stimulation – involve her staff in the planning and creation of assignments.
Individualized Consideration – provide support and encouragement to each staff member, get to know them on an individual basis, mentor where possible.
Overall
Certainly this is an animated comedy with a no-holds barred approach to make the audience laugh. It’s a cartoon that teeters on the offensive, albeit a mature comedy. Inherently the joke of the show is that ISIS has the worst reputation in the spy game but has some of the best spies at its disposal.
Mallory Archer is driven to have the best intelligence agency in the world and the fact of the matter is that she won’t be changing her ways too soon. She has been around for years and knows what is needed to save the world from evil and making money at the same time. Sometimes the definition of evil is blurred, but ultimately she stands for justice and making things right — even though she would rather be rich than catch the bad guy.
Ultimately, the fascination is that bad leadership makes good comedy. So what appeals to you?
References
Archer (2009– ) TV Series. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1486217/
Mallory Archer Biography. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0199483/bio
Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publication
Amy Lynn Crain says
I really like that you mentioned Michael Scott from The Office in this post. He really is one of those bad leaders that find success, which make great for comedic entertainment. Michael Scott possesses traits that are conducive to negative leadership. If he existed in real life, he would have been fired within the first month of employment. Michael Scott lacks intelligence, self-confidence, determination, integrity, and sociability, all five of which are the traits Northouse (2013) state are necessary for effective leadership. For example, he lacks the self-confidence to conduct effective decision-making, he lacks determination illustrated by his procrastination and lack of work ethic, and he lacks sociability in that he offends pretty much everyone in the office.
The greatest aspect of Michael’s personality is that he has no idea how his actions affect those around him or the success of his branch. He really should educate himself with the Psychodynamic and Style Approaches which both emphasizes the importance of self- and staff-awareness (Northouse, 2013).
Like Mallory from Archer, I think Michael Scott has the best of intentions, which is why the audience is still rooting for him no matter what offensive or nonsensical thing he does. This would definitely not always be the case in the real-world. Regardless of intentions, what matters in most (if not all) organizations is results.
References
Northouse, P. G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and practice (6th ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE.