The Art of Apology for Leaders

The Art of Apology for Leaders

One of the most frequent and daunting relational and interpersonal challenges that leaders face in an organization is making an effective apology. Form the point of view of a leader, a public apology can be an extremely risky - one that can seriously jeopardize the integrity of a person as a leader. When making an apology, it is imperative to understand the essence of the apology and the rules governing it since this will help to avoid two major errors: senseless denial of guilt and remorse exaggerated. When you inflict harm upon a person, a good custom orders apologize (Smith et al., 2010, 727-746). The person who is at the receiving end has a right to expect an apology from the one who has hurt him and the culprit must admit to the error and express regret. By simply saying sorry, a person conveys a very strong message to the person who is hurt. The message is aimed at convincing the audience that the person responsible is trying to fix the error, reconciliation, and making amends. However, the game play changes completely when the person expected to make an apology is a leader (Schleien et al., 2010, p. 170-186).

When management makes a mistake or has serious consequences for the working environment, the leader is mostly the person who is expected to make a formal apology. Public apology is a risky step. If a public apology is not accepted, it can be a suicidal move (Smith et al., 2010, p. 727-746). The willingness to apologize can be seen as a sign of courage and strong character or as a sign of weakness. Sincere repentance expressed publicly in a thoughtful way, without any doubt, it is able to change the hostile environment in triumph as personal and institutional. But if the apology is incomplete or late, it may eventually lead to complete ruin the reputation of a leader and his company (Eaton et al., 2007, p. 209-222).

Research Question

Leaders should employ a proper strategy when seeking an apology since the credibility and integrity of their position as a leader can be seriously compromised.

Discussion

When corporate leaders representing the organization make a mistake, they too are confronted with the difficult and rather unsettling decision of whether or not they should make public apology. From the point of view of a leader, a public apology is a risky move indeed. It is highly political in nature and, for a leader, every word of the apology counts (Schleien et al., 2010, p. 170-186). Refusal to apologize can either end up being a smart move or a catastrophe. Similarly, those who follow the leader can have multiple interpretations of their leader's apology - the willingness to make a pulic apology can be seen both as a sign of strength or as a sign of weakness. A successful apology can turn enmity into personal and organizational triumph, while an apology too little, too late or too tactic could open the floodgates to individual and institutional ruin (Smith et ...