Dear Editor,
Comments by Dr Rudi V Webster likening the state of West Indies cricket to the Titanic disaster brought forcibly home to me that even in the area of sports administration there are anomalies devoid of rationale. The same can be observed almost daily in very critical areas of public administration. I refer to the public sector because of its traditionally ingrained concept of service as against that of private sector profitability.
Webster said that like the captain of the Titanic, the West Indies president and board signalled that they didn’t need advice; would make their own “dangerously reckless” decisions and do what they had to do without interference from those who had the best interest of cricket at heart. Editor no one can reasonably argue against needing, “correct feedback to monitor progress and adjust our strategy and direction on the way to our goals”. But sadly enough that is exactly the mindset of a few “pompous and overconfident leaders” who underperform having become “experts at denying objective feedback … because they don’t like the picture” that feedback presents.
In describing Dave Cameron as possibly the board’s most overconfident, inflexible and arrogant president, Webster is in sync with the “experts” who cite overconfidence (as) psychological fraud and a prescription for disaster. Again we might wish to draw parallels from our varied personal and professional experience and identify those “over-confident leaders [who] think they are better than they really are.” It does not take any stretch of imagination to realise that these leaders of critical public sector agencies “usually overestimate their power, importance and ability and underestimate that of other people … [believing] that they are king … they behave recklessly, foolishly and selfishly and eventually pay a heavy price.” A few are even known to suffer from the “I” syndrome where for the first fifteen minutes in their presence it is all about “I did this or that.” Editor, I am all in favour of reforming the entire public sector but certain agencies have more priority need of a complete overhaul than others.
Yours faithfully,
Patrick E Mentore
