# Executive Hypocrisy By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2024-02-28 Hypocrisy occurs when one claims to adhere to a position contrary to one's actions. In other words, there is a contradiction between what one says and does. Hypocrisy is common. It arises primarily because there is a socially preferred position. People are supposed to match certain positions. So many people do. But those positions aren't what people want to do. What they want to do is what is enjoyable. Given the visibility of those in the upper echelon of organizations, executive hypocrisy is frequently displayed. It is relatively uninteresting to point out executive hypocrisy. It is so ubiquitous that it should be expected rather than a source of surprise or disappointment. A more interesting aspect of the examination is the degree to which executives are aware of their hypocrisy. Does a hypocritical executive know that one is a hypocrite? This isn't easy to know. For the same reasons that one feels compelled to espouse a position one doesn't intend to enact, one would be unlikely to admit to being a hypocrite. Having integrity is precisely the position one feels compelled to adopt publicly. As such, one can't hope that a hypocritical executive will have integrity when admitting to hypocrisy. Perhaps the best one can do is assess the likelihood of executive awareness based on other aspects of observed introspection. If an executive conveys little to no reflective insights, chances are good that the executive is unaware of one's hypocrisy. If an executive conveys a significant degree of reflective insights, chances are good that the executive is fully aware of one's hypocrisy. Paradoxically, being aware of it is both better and worse. It is better insofar as one is dealing with an executive with a more accurate assessment of reality. It is worse insofar as one is dealing with a sociopath. Executive hypocrisy is real and pervasive. It is revealing that so little attention is given to this phenomenon. Maybe it is ignored because there is little to do about it. If they are open to critique at all, organizations tend to critique operations, not executive personnel. Executives dismiss any assessment of them from those at lower echelons within the organization as being naïve and uninformed. Hypocrisy often uses complexity as a shield. It isn't "hypocrisy" if one is engaged in the "chess" movements demanded in the executive suite. The only issue with this is that such justifications are self-serving lies. Executive hypocrisy must be addressed if organizations wish to become fulfilling sites of authenticity and solidarity. #### Related Items [[Executives]] [[Hypocrisy]] [[Organization]] [[Behavior]] [[Hierarchy]] [[Integrity]]