Thrown Any Dead Cats Lately?

If it weren’t so sad, it would be funny in a sick kind of way. I’ve been wrangling with the local post office for two months over a missing book. The post office says it was delivered and I should quit bothering them. I have no doubt the book was delivered somewhere; it just wasn’t delivered to me.

In our first chat, Mrs. W., the local pooh-bah, promised to immediately check into the matter and call me the following day. Of course, she didn’t call. When I called her a week later, she was shocked to learn that no one in her department had contacted me with an answer. She’s been similarly shocked three more times.

In a past life, we called what Mrs. W. is doing as “throwing the dead cat over the wall.” The phrase came into being after our company had been acquired by another firm. Our new boss leader was from the acquiring organization. He issued work directives and new projects with numbing regularity.

The trick became figuring out which demand was the dead cat (the one he would never ask about again) or the live one (where he would call you 39 minutes after making the assignment to see if it was completed). Having a boss who passed along assignments and never, ever followed up on them was a new experience. One that was unpleasant, confusing, deadly to credibility (his and the new organization's), and incredible fodder for gamesmanship.

The quality of his instructions wasn’t in question. What was lacking was thoughtful analysis regarding the need for the work in the first place and follow up… not the hovering helicopter style but rather the meaningful close-the-loop informal check-in where it’s confirmed that all is well or in which help is offered.

We were trying to make sense of a new organizational culture and were grabbing at any clues offered. We wanted to give our new boss some leeway, recognizing we all get busy and sometimes forget to follow up. Yet as we got to know his style better, it become clear his behaviors weren’t rooted in forgetfulness or being too busy or even being overwhelmed. Unfortunately, “dead cats” became an underground metaphor for a boss whose leadership lacked clarity, communication and character. And the bummer part is that he wasn’t self-aware enough to grasp his behaviors or open enough to accept our feedback that we weren’t sure which assignments took priority. Too bad I don't have his email address any more, or I would introduce him to Mrs. W.

Photo: Animal Space