Jennifer Rubin writes at The Washington Post:
The Post has a must-read piece about Herman Cain’s tenure at the National Restaurant Association. Quite apart from any sexual harassment troubles, it seems that he was not good at his job...
The implication is that this is reflective of his personal shortcomings as an executive: “His problems at the restaurant association mirror those that have plagued his campaign. A talented orator, Cain has inspired a level of enthusiasm in conservative voters that his rivals can only envy. But he has struggled to maintain an organized campaign, with staff members in key states quitting out of frustration.”
This is entirely at odds, of course, with Cain’s message that he is a problem solver and uber-competent executive. It also poses a legitimate question as to how he was so successful at Godfather’s Pizza and so bad at running organizations (NRA, his campaign) after that.
It’s very possible we have the Peter Principle at work here. It’s one thing to sell pizza and quite another to be a public figure managing competing constituencies, receiving barbed criticism, and being pressed to deliver more than one-liners and good cheer. It’s also possible he simply knew who to hire and had better help in the pizza business.
This article provides an interesting perspective, but I would also like to view his record as deputy chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. If there is doubt regarding whether his expertise as a CEO in the private sector extends to the public sector, then surely his tenure in Kansas City can help shed some light on the issue. – Madison Friedman
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