An aging leader may not be as strong or fast as they used to be, but they are still capable and functional in most areas. An impaired leader makes bad decisions, misses opportunities, doesn't follow through on commitments, and otherwise displays behaviors and attitudes that are inappropriate for their position of power, negatively impacting the people and the business. It can be difficult to push out an impaired senior leader who is one of the owners. Through their extensive work with family businesses all over the world, the authors have identified several strategies to help family members cope with an impaired leader to avoid further damaging the company and the family.
The FBI caught up with the head of the New York mob in the fall of 2021. The 87-year-old had led the family business with a disciplined, hands-on management style for many years. He had begun to ignore his own best practices, and was using insecure communication to directly involve himself in criminal activity. He wouldn't listen to suggestions that it was time to step aside for the next generation of leadership, even though his associates had known about his problems for years. They all paid for his mistakes when he was arrested.
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