L13: Early Warning Signs of Leadership Failure

Situation

A leader delivers strong business results and maintains professional appearances, yet subtle warning signs suggest brewing dysfunction. Teams seem increasingly disengaged, talented employees quietly transfer departments, and colleagues begin avoiding collaboration while being unable to articulate specific concerns.

Symptoms

Hidden Dysfunction Indicators:

• Performance paradox: Strong business metrics masking deteriorating team health and sustainability
• Quiet exodus patterns: High-potential employees seeking transfers or leaving without dramatic conflicts
• Defensive behavior escalation: Leader becoming increasingly sensitive to feedback, blame-shifting, or controlling
• Informal complaint networks: Whispered concerns and behind-the-scenes conversations about leadership behavior
• Energy drain visible: Team meetings becoming tense, innovation declining, psychological safety eroding

Organizational Early Warning Signals:

• Team productivity maintained through unsustainable effort rather than effective leadership
• Customer relationships beginning to show strain as internal dysfunction affects service quality
• Cross-functional collaboration declining as other departments avoid working with the team
• Succession planning complicated as internal candidates resist roles under this leader
• Cultural values erosion in areas under this leader's influence

Challenge

Primary Goal: Detect emerging leadership failure patterns before they escalate into crisis, enabling early intervention that preserves both leader potential and team effectiveness.

Why it matters: Leadership failure typically develops over 12-18 months with early warning signs appearing 6-9 months before crisis. Early detection and intervention can prevent 80% of leadership derailments, saving organizations the massive costs of leadership replacement and team rebuilding.

Key Questions to Answer:

• Which specific toxic or derailing behaviors are emerging under current pressures?
• How significant is the gap between the leader's self-perception and team experience?
• What early intervention approaches could address these patterns before they become entrenched?
• Which environmental factors are triggering or amplifying problematic leadership behaviors?

Solution Approach

Deploy early detection diagnostics that reveal hidden dysfunction before it becomes irreversible:

Phase 1: Hidden Risk and Perception Gap Assessment

• Toxic trait and derailment risk profiling - Identify specific behavioral patterns that create team dysfunction
• 360-degree feedback and self-awareness analysis - Measure gaps between leader's self-perception and team experience
• Narcissism and ego-driven behavior evaluation - Assess risk factors for increasingly problematic leadership patterns

Phase 2: Team Impact and Environmental Analysis

• Team climate and psychological safety measurement - Quantify the actual team experience and engagement levels
• Social impact and relationship pattern assessment - Map how the leader's behavior affects collaboration and trust
• Trigger identification and intervention planning - Understand what situations activate problematic behaviors and how to address them

Expected Outcomes

• Immediate (0-2 months): Clear identification of emerging risks and intervention opportunities
• Medium-term (2-4 months): Targeted behavior change initiatives and improved self-awareness
• Long-term (4+ months): Either successful behavior modification or structured transition planning

Available only in the PEATS Guide: in-depth comparisons of the most relevant online assessments for this case — including pricing, strengths and weaknesses, scientific quality, and detailed insights into the 7 closest-fit online assessments:

L13. Early Warning Signs of Leadership Failure

• Hogan HDS → derailers and risks.
• EQ-360 (MHS) → 360° feedback on EI.
• XLNC Climate → early team climate signals.
• Hogan HBRI → reasoning risks.
• Leadership/Impact® 360 (HS) → impact on others.
• LSI (HS) → personal patterns linked to failure.
• Thomas HPTI → resilience and vulnerability traits.