I've met so many business managers and CEOs who, like game-show hucksters, are ready to spend investors and owners' money simply "following the latest thing." In a low-growth, competitive industry like car-rentals, how else does one make a name for oneself or potentially earn $tens of millions in bonuses, unless one places ridiculous bets?
A CEO candidate who simply said, I'm going to focus on cost-control, key employee retention, and operational efficiency to grow our market share and profit a few % points, would be called "boring" and and "lacking vision."
The ability of a seasoned executive or manager to accept mandated nonsense with enthusiasm while slow-walking it into oblivion is a beautiful thing to watch. It takes a very smart person to let something dumb ferment knee deep in group-think until it’s no longer popular.
Scherr’s salary was $182 million, 3rd highest for a CEO in the US at the time. I could have happily screwed up the company at least that badly for half that amount.
Managers that manage are seen as losers. You are correct without exception.
When I was much younger, I worked at a corporate chain of restaurants that would roll out the "new dish of the month" that would be a sensation for a month or two, and then settle into irrelevance. But the restaurant staff would still have to deal with the one or two orders a month, which was a giant pain in the keester.
I called it "another yuppie gets his condo", in reference to the up-and-coming management hotshot that was making a name for himself or herself.
Where’s Gomer expressing “Surprise!” when you need him?