Everyone makes mistakes, but at work, everyone is not required to own up to them.

If an employee screws up, s/he is expected to admit it, apologize for it, identify lessons learned,  and commit to doing better in the future. We call that “employee development.”

If a boss screws up, s/he is not expected to own up to it or apologize. Instead, we are supposed to work around, cover up or pretend that the boss is never wrong. When employees dare to point out their boss’ mistakes, we call that “insubordination,” and subject them to disciplinary action.

Pretending that bosses never make mistakes puts a lot of pressure on bosses, and robs organizations of truth and authenticity. It affects productivity and morale, and drives a wedge between management and employees.

The best way to fix organizations suffering from the ill effects of pretending the boss is always right–what I call the “Superiority Tango” (see chapters 4-6 of my book, Management Culture)–is for bosses to admit when they are wrong, apologize to those who were negatively affected, and learn from their mistakes.

I once wasted 6 months of an employee’s work life on a project that was a mistake to even begin. When I made the assignment, I had not fully understood the complexity of the issues. I also did not make analyzing the issues part of the assignment. Trying to be a strong leader, I  decided what needed to be done, and told the employee to do it.

After the project was completed, I realized I was wrong. I couldn’t undue my mistake, but I could apologize and learn from it. I apologized to my boss and the employee who did the work. I learned that the best decisions are made when I ask the people actually doing the work to participate in the analysis, and make recommendations of what to do and how to do it. Now, I seldom presume I know enough to dictate a solution before the analysis has been done.

Everyone makes mistakes. Organizations are healthy and vibrant when everyone is free to talk about them, own up to them, apologize and learn from them.

For more radical ideas on how to improve organizational life and productivity, see my book, Management Culture at mgmtculture.com or on Amazon.