Execution and Results in a Crisis Situation

Scott Wilson

08/23/2015

MGT 605

Professor Carrie Noah

HW 3B

Execution and Results in a Crisis Situation

1.) In the Kirkpatrick and Shane article, several leaders are mentioned including President George W. Bush, Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff, and FEMA director Michael D.

Brown. Briefly evaluate each of these leaders on their overall effectiveness at managing execution and driving for results.

To me, I do not think that either leader stepped up to the plate, and try to even to either manage or lead this devastating event. Heck, our own President George W. Bush did not even fly over the disaster zone until many days later. Even the ones on his staff were incompetent, and basically ignored the phones calls that Brown had made in an attempt to let the President be aware of what was happening to Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina struck. But, Bush even congratulated Brown on the job that was done, and Brown was then fired shortly after. These leaders were useless when it comes to managing or even leading this disaster, which led to the disastrous results that eventually occurred.

2.) We learn from the Kirkpatrick and Shane article that FEMA director Brown was removed from his job one week after Katrina struck New Orleans. What portion of this outcome for Brown would you attribute to organizational factors versus his personal ability to manage execution and drive for results?

If it were up to Brown, he’d say that it was an organizational factors that would be associated with the Governor of Louisiana that led to the disengagement between the goals of the federal government, which were to evacuate everybody through either air or other forms of emergency transportation. Brown would also go onto say that due to the Governor, and her staff were incapable of organizing a coherent state effort and that his field...