Gary Hamel Quotes

Even the frankest and bravest of subordinates do not talk with their boss the same way they talk with colleagues.

The basic principle is I command, and my employees carry it out immediately.

It's tough being a dictator, but I've always thought it must be tougher being a hanger-on to a dictator. The late nights spent listening to his crazed ranting, the weary rictus grin from smiling at bad jokes, the draining knowledge that one misjudged comment could land you on the chopping block.

All managers are losers, they are the most expendable pieces of furniture on the face of the Earth.

I've told stories about people coming to my office and giving me their coats and requesting that I hang them up and get coffee - which I dutifully do. And then I come in and sit at the head of the table. It's awkward.

The P.C. police are out in force at all times... We've reached a point where people are actually afraid to talk about what they want to say.

I had some things I had to fix. It took me 14 years to do it. But it was never really fun back in the day to work with directors who were a lot older and were like authoritarian and talking to you like that.

We all have hierarchies at work - even on set, the runner would never walk up to the director and ask for a cup of coffee.

I think 'Dilbert' will remain popular as long as employees are frustrated and they fear the consequences of complaining too loudly. 'Dilbert' is the designated voice of discontent for the workplace. I never planned it that way. It just happened.

As dutiful bishops soon discover, authoritarianism, or control from the top down, characterizes the hierarchical tradition.

Nobody will admit to playing power games in relationships, but they do.

That the more authoritarian organizations survive and prevail goes generally unnoticed because people focus on the objectives of organizations, which are many and varied, rather than on their structures, which lend to be similar.

I have a theory that you can tell what the head of a company is like by the people who work there. I knew a publishing house that was run on fear and paranoia, and I felt sorry for everyone who worked there. Needless to say, the person at the helm was not known for kindness, warmth, or grace.

I found Hollywood pretty bruising and uncreative. The executives are all in thrall to the boss, and spend their times double-guessing him or her, and trying to remember what he/she said and then applying them to the script, whether it was useful or not. They're all in fear for their jobs.

Hateful is the power, and pitiable is the life, of those who wish to be feared rather than loved.

Power does not corrupt. Fear corrupts... perhaps the fear of a loss of power.

Influence is a very unpleasant subject and I deal with it in a maybe irresponsible way, which is to really ignore it. It would be a nightmare if we started to really think about it; it would tie our hands, it would tie everyone else's hands.

Politics exist in the boardroom, as well.

Men are swayed more by fear than by reverence.

The thing about Republicans is that they don't care so much about respect, but they love fear, at least in others.

Nothing is more despicable than respect based on fear.

Power over others is weakness disguised as strength.

At this point, American workers are pretty respectful of the bosses they loathe.

Even though worker capacity and motivation are destroyed when leaders choose power over productivity, it appears that bosses would rather be in control than have the organization work well.

Sitting in marble corridors waiting for important people to lie to you.