Trust Issues – Post #2

As an organization, Overland is extremely efficient. They’ve been in the game for so long (for over 60 years — they were actually the first organization to run outdoor trips like this!) that they’ve been able to tweak and adjust their programs and culture year after year to really hone in on what makes a great summer. Everything from pre-summer communication to staff training to during-summer requests were well thought out and extremely efficient. I did not see many of the inner workings of Overland, as I was out in the field and not in the office, but from what I was able to experience, there are not many recommendations I could make to improve efficiency. Another area Overland excels in is teamwork. The culture of Overland is very collaborative and supportive, welcoming and inclusive. 

Ironically, the biggest problem that Overland faces is its founder. To put it bluntly, no one likes him. Year round staff complain about him behind his back and seasonal trip leaders grow weary of him by the end of leader training. While there are numerous positive qualities about the founder and countless lessons to learn from someone in his position, he can be impatient, slightly aggressive, and rude. During leader training, I overheard some year round staff members venting about his lack of trust. During seminars and presentations, he consistently interrupts the presenters (who are all members of the year round staff team) to add his own insight or stories. At times, this is helpful, but as a presenter, I’m sure it gets frustrating very quickly. It gives the appearance that he does not trust the staff members to do the presentation well on their own. It is so important for a leader to trust his employees. Trust is the foundation of any relationship, and if Overland’s employees are not feeling trusted or supported by their boss, then employee turnover will continue to increase and a culture of distrust will be born. Currently, Overland trusts its seasonal trip leaders wholeheartedly. As we are the ones in the field actively dealing with situations, Overland trusts our judgement and decision making. If the culture of distrust trickles down from the founder →  year round staff to the year round staff→ trip leaders, then Overland will likely lose many of its trip leaders.

Someone has to talk to the founder. It is unclear if he is aware of the ways in which he undermines his staff members. It would be best if Overland hired someone to do an internal review of the company. This unbiased, removed third party would be able to explain what is happening in an objective, impersonal way. Standing up to your boss is hard, and I understand why any staff member is hesitant to talk to the founder themselves. However, someone has to do it. Something’s got to change, or Overland will see negative consequences in the near future.