Blame Sandwich

It’s your fault…even when it’s not your fault.

That’s the part of leadership you don’t want to hear.

But it’s reality.

Leaders have to be willing to take the blame for the failures of others around them.

Regardless whose fault it is.

You know I’m all about “scaring” you out of leadership by sharing the truth.

For example, how you take blame will reveal your true intentions as leader quickly.

Take for instance the Los Angeles Dodgers.

For all the money spent on their roster, if they lost Game 7 of the World Series most of the blame would fall on Manager Dave Roberts.

Why? Because leaders are a lighting rod for blame when it comes to failure.

I’m not a huge baseball fan, but the sports analogy of a coach and his team has practical business applications.

• Let’s face it, when leaders make decisions they are going to be judged based on the results.

• Even if you manage risk well, desired outcomes aren’t guaranteed.

Without going into details, Roberts inserted a few players who don’t normally start (Rojas & Pages) into late game situations and they made huge plays that helped the team towards victory.

If the strategy backfired, Roberts would be blamed for the choice.

But he knew that.

How do I know? (I don’t know Roberts personally)

Because he knows his players well.

It doesn’t take a Dodgers fan, let alone a sports fan to observe how he interacts and talks to/about his players.

You can see a genuine care and respect that goes both ways.

That alone instills confidence in the people under your leadership to perform well in big moments.

And if things didn’t turn out the way he envisioned?

Roberts would have fallen on the sword himself.

• On the contrary, there are plenty of examples of leaders who are more than willing to pass the blame on others.

• Politicians comes to mind, such as Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass.

• Both take every opportunity to play the victim card and refuse to take any responsibility for their decisions.

This isn’t meant to be a political post, but clear examples are clear examples.

Back to the blame sandwich analogy.

If you’re in leadership, you face a crossroads.

When things go wrong (because they will), how will you respond?

This reminds me of when I managed a remote team of 30 and facilitated weekly 1:1’s with them.

The most powerful question I asked each of them when I met them virtually was…

“How can I support you?”

Most looked perplexed, but I followed up by saying the following,

“When things go wrong, how do you want me to support you? Do you want me to check-in? Help problem solve? Offer a resource? Just listen? Etc.”

The answer to that question went into a personal file filled with notes so when a crisis arose, I knew how to respond.

You see, leadership is relational (even if you don’t consider that a strengths of yours).

It’s about knowing your people: their strengths, weaknesses, personalities, tendencies, triggers, etc. 

Because leading a team of people has more to do with managing egos than simply strategic moves.

In fact, the more talented a team of individuals are, the stronger coach for that situation is needed.

The reason why understanding the concept of a blame sandwich is so important is great leaders are willing to take the blame for their team’s failures.

We don’t ever plan for or accept failure, but when it smacks us in the the face people are looking at our reaction to it.

The easy way out is to point fingers, but that’s a cowardly move.

True leaders are prepared to take the hit for their team since it shows how invested they are in the growth and eventual success of the individuals involved.

If you’re already doing this, great!

But if this concept seems challenging, I offer this resource to you and your company.

Keep fighting for your people and God Bless,

Scott

If you found this helpful and you’re looking to improve your soft skills as a leader, here are ways to work with me directly:

• 🗣 Hire me to speak at your company or next event (watch my speaking reel here)

• 🎤 Invite me to lead an interactive training workshop, remotely or in-person (depending on location)

• 🤝 Start 1:1 coaching with me as a new manager, current leader or executive (I once managed 30 people 1:1 weekly❗️)

Also, you can help me out by forwarding this to friends whom would benefit from it! Thank you!