By Don Keelan

For those of you who have read my columns these past two-plus decades, you may recall my writing about leadership. The articles appeared in 2005, 2012, and once more in 2019. Lately, the news has made it clear that my message on leadership has yet to resonate. Nevertheless, I am unwilling to abandon the continuing need to comment on such an important subject—especially at this time.  

Several weeks ago, in Vermont, there was an announcement, reported in VTDigger on September 30th by Kevin O’Connor, that the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The Diocese’s reported objective was to place its remaining assets, roughly $30 million, under the court’s protection. 

The need for the protection was due to the continuous lawsuits filed against the RCDB by individuals who alleged that they were sexually violated in the past by priests who, at the time, were under the direction of the RCDB. 

This latest round of lawsuits (16) comes after the RCDB paid over $30 million in claimant settlements. The RCDB now joins 40 other Catholic Dioceses around the country that have filed for bankruptcy protection. 

The Catholic Church has endured a great deal of internal change caused by this scandal. It is not the only institution that, for years, allowed the unwelcomed conduct of its charges to violate those young men and women entrusted to them. 

The Boys Scouts of America, Michigan State University, USA Gymnastics, and the Penn State Football Program were just several institutions that ignored what was taking place. Frankly, these institutions, and specifically their leaders, turned a blind eye to a culture that allowed the conduct of some of its members to occur. How else would such vile conduct gone on for years? Or, in the case of the Catholic Church, for two generations?

As this sad story of violations unfolds, the institutions’ perpetrators and leaders have been called out. A specific case in Boston was the plot of the 2016 movie Spotlight. One cannot help but ask the question: where were the voices of those thousands of members of such organizations who were not involved but had known or should have known what was taking place?

Make no mistake—thousands of priests, scout leaders, teachers, and coaches were and still are hesitant to speak up because their respective organizations lacked a “culture of safety.” 

An example of such behavior can be found in the ranks of those involved in public safety, such as the police.  We have, through the media, seen excessive force used on an arrestee, witnessed by other professionals. Still, because of a lack of a “culture of safety,” bystander professionals fail to speak up.

In its blog, Insights, published on August 21, 2024, the McChrystal Group, an international leadership training consulting firm, noted, “Cultural norms are ultimately determined by what people can see and what people can sense from the attitudes and behaviors role-modeled by an organization’s leadership.”

Since the 1950s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, businesses, nonprofits, religious, and government organizations have adopted many tools, strategies, and systems to aid them in operating their organizations, which has helped enormously. However, there is something more to be added. 

According to the McChrystal Group’s blog, “while tools and technology can accelerate cultural change, the enduring impact comes from leaders who demonstrate the expected behaviors day in and day out.” 

One can only imagine what the outcome would have been for the Church, the Scouts, Penn State, and the University of Michigan had those folks, who must have known what was taking place, felt safe and spoken out, but because of the absence of  “a culture of safety,” stayed silent. Had they, it could have meant that thousands of children would not have been violated, and institutions would not have had to pay out billions of dollars in damages. Let us not dismiss what also could have been avoided: the present lack of trust in what was once our most respected institutions. 

There is a saying, and I quote, “culture eats strategy for breakfast.”

The author is a U.S. Marine (retired), CPA, and columnist living in Arlington, VT.