LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP 68 way”, without accountability for having caused negative feelings, risks causing further psychological harm to a recipient. A progressive apology Outlining constructive action is a positive way of showing that lessons have been learnt and moving an apology from offending behaviour to repairing relationships. People are often more interested in how a leader will make a situation right and will judge them more for this, than the initial problem they are saying sorry for. Apologising CEOs must be prepared to outline a definitive plan of action for how they will correct a situation, with tangible steps that link back to the root of what went wrong. It’s then critical that they hold themselves accountable for ensuring changes are made and solutions implemented. Fixing an issue is the most measurable part of an apology and an acid test for how sorry a leader genuinely is. Addressing matters by making amends will help a CEO to bounce back from a problem with humility and create an opportunity for them to re-engage the people offended by the actions they are apologising for. situation, it must be about the people who have been offended. Once an individual has said sorry, the situation should be no longer about themself and must focus on those impacted by mistakes or wrongdoings. An apology should show empathy by demonstrating an understanding of the problems caused and acknowledging how another party has been affected. Some of the most successful CEOs are thosewhosee theworld through the eyes of the markets they’re aiming to serve, the stakeholders they represent and the teams they lead. This outward-looking view is critical to the sincerity of an apology and how it resonates with the audiences a leader is aiming to make amends with. An empathetic apology helps a leader to convey exactly why they are apologising and to genuinely show they are saying sorry for the issues caused, instead of being perceived to be trying to save their own skin, appease their guilt, avoid legal action, or salvage their reputation. True empathy can help tominimise shame, reduce the prolonging of anger amongst affected parties and enable a leader to focus on moving forwards more quickly. It’s important to note though that an insincere, “I’m sorry you feel that They won’t be afraid to make the big decisions and will do so with authenticity, demonstrating clear ownership of the choices they are making and why. This helps to create reassurance and instil confidence amongst employees and other stakeholders and garners valuable trust that creates the allimportant buy-in required to help deliver a CEO’s strategy. The same approach is required when making an apology. A leader should be prepared to take ownership of their apology, avoiding any scapegoating, and attempting to hide behind any attempted justification for problems or mistakes. An explanation about wrongdoings or failures can be useful, but leaders shouldn’t overdo this. Not only are a CEO’s reasons for acting a certain way sometimes confidential, oversharing risks being viewed as making excuses, which is likely to do more damage, rather than helping remedy a situation. An apology should be the start of making amends, meaning it’s important that a leader clearly admits a mistake and then looks forward. It’s about them, not you For an apology to be sincere and to effectively start restoring a
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