Leadership Failures Sink Unsinkable Ship Business Lessons from the Titanic

by Jocelyn Davis

The Titanic disaster is one of the most familiar stories there is; it has been called the greatest news story of modern times. A century later, historians are still arguing about what could have been done to prevent the sinking of the “unsinkable” ship and the drowning of more than fifteen hundred passengers and crew. The massive investigations that followed the event resulted in a host of new laws and safety improvements to ships, including better hull and rudder design, lifeboat requirements, better exit routes, and radio communications laws. But while these technical and legal improvements undoubtedly saved lives in the years to come, they didn’t address the catastrophe’s fundamental cause: a failure in leadership.

Jocelyn R. Davis uses research from The Forum Corporation to illuminate what leaders did wrong on the Titanic and the Californian—and what they did right on the Carpathia—on that long-ago night in the North Atlantic. The same lessons can be applied to 21st-century organizations that operate on dry land. “Leadership Failures Sink Unsinkable Ship” takes a fresh look at the disaster, uncovers its true causes, and provides practical advice you can apply as a business leader today.

25 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 11, 2012