I was in a meeting recently with a successful startup CEO who was sharing how he runs his teams for best results. He finished by by saying, “…and that way we make sure we don’t end up with ‘hippo’ decisions.”
And I thought, “Heavy decisions?” “Decisions that are big and more dangerous than they appear?”
No, “hippo” decisions are actually HIPPO decisions, ones in which the HIghest Paid Person’s Opinion rules the day.
There are entire organizations and cultures built around HIPPO decision-making. You’ve worked at these sorts of places–maybe you do right now. In these cultures, in meeting after meeting everyone is holding their collective breath waiting for the HIPPO to speak. Or, whole conversations happen and ultimately the HIPPO tells everyone what she thinks of the conversation and tells us all what we’ll do next.
Some anti-HIPPO resources that might be useful: the original HBR article on Adaptive Leadership and the great +Acumen course that will help you learn and apply the concepts. A powerful book by General Stanley McChrystal on Teams of Teams.
The funny thing about HIPPO cultures is that they let everyone off the hook: you’d think the non-HIPPOS might feel frustrated that their voice isn’t being heard, but often it’s a relief to have someone else decide, to know that you’re just pitching in some thoughts and that someone else will be on the line.
(And to all you HIPPOs out there, while it’s possible that you’re consistently the smartest, most experienced, wisest person in the room in general, what are the chances that you’re the smartest, most experienced, wisest about all things all of the time?)
Lest we forget forget…hippos are the most dangerous animal on the Savannah.
Sasha – I’d also heard this as the highest Position — in communities, I see deferral to idiotic or selfish decisions because “he has X job title”… this can even instutional. Nationally, SBDcs often are not exactly friends of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, but we defer because of the “SB” in their name…
How do we overcome this when the HIPPO insists on being The One Ring? 🙂 TIA!
I agree it can just as easily refer to whoever has the most authority. I think at an organizational level one needs to make conscious design and norms decisions to overcome this natural tendency.