Munchausen at Work: HBR

Posted on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 by Frank Roche

You know when you get one of those ah-ha moments because a person brings a problem into specific relief? Today’s one of those days. This article about Munchausen at Work is a brilliant diagnosis of a real workplace issue. Siobhan Ford at Harvard Business Review wrote this to me (emphasis is mine):

Georgia Tech professor Nate Bennett studied team performance in over 30 companies and was struck by cases of employees creating fictitious organizational problems in order to solve them and receive praise for it. He calls the phenomenon “Munchausen at work”—a workplace version of the psychological disorder Munchausen by proxy—and explains how managers can diagnose it.

You can read the article for free at HBR during the month of November 2007 by clicking here. (You really should subscribe to HBR — it’s loaded with great information every month.)

I’ve seen plenty of Munchausen at Work in my career. I think Professor Bennett is being conservative when he says it’s infrequent. After all, isn’t that what half of all meetings are about — some problem created so that someone can swoop down and fix it? It’d be interesting to call people on their Munchausen at Work-iness. It could be the new “Can I give you some feedback?”, only this time it would be, “Is this a real problem or is this Munchausen at Work?” That would stop the disrupters in their tracks.

HR Idea for the Day: Call Professor Bennett. Get him to come to your shop and present his Munchausen at Work findings. Print up some buttons and t-shirts that say “Wipe Out Munchausen at Work in Our Lifetime.” Get some wristbands made that say “No MAW.”

User Comments

Michelle Malay Carter

Nov 9th, 2007

Frank,

Are we creating problems that we know we can fix because we are too overwhelmed by the magnitude of the real problems? 79% employee disengagement says Towers Perrin.

It’s easier to implement micro level solutions than address the macro level.

Regards,

Michelle Malay Carter
Frank Roche

Nov 10th, 2007

Michelle, really good piece of supporting data. It’s such a real issue…and I think a big one. I’m going to do a couple more pieces about this…I want to think through the implications, as you say, on the micro and macro levels. I like the wording of the idea Dr. Bennett developed — it’s shorthand for a big issue.
rob

Nov 10th, 2007

I’m very sceptical of any employee engagement statistics. It must be one of the most – but least consistently – measured concepts around right now.
John Groth

Nov 16th, 2007

After over 35 years sitting through to many meetings to count, I would suggest that another way to define the “Munchausen” problem are issues floated that have little weight. There is a real problem but the protagonist tries to elevate the issue so it moves up the “to do” list. Many times the “problem” plays to the strengths of the finder, may be technical in nature, and not clearly understood by the executive in charge. A tailor made “Munchausen” situation. I must admit, on occasion, I’ve been guilty of finding problems where, if left alone,would just fade away.
Katje

Jan 24th, 2008

Dear Frank,

I just had an AH HA! moment at work. As I’m speaking to one co-worker about another I explain saying “You know what it is?! She has Munchausen at Work!” So, in all of my genius I Google the term thinking surely I have struck gold with my new brilliant phrase. Not so, as I stumble upon your article. Ah well. I am comforted in knowing, I am not alone.

NO MAW!!!!

Kate
Frank Roche

Jan 24th, 2008

Hi Katje,

What a funny coincidence. I know when I first thought about Munchausen at Work I thought the same thing. It makes sense, doesn’t it? I mean, companies pay people to solve problems…and there are some people who create problems just to solve them. Craziness.

Thanks very much for checking in and leaving a note. I really appreciate it.
chris wong

Jul 14th, 2008

I think the following is a variation of “Munchausen-At-Work”. I once worked in a group where one employee would escalate to managment that most everbody else was either stealing from the company; take illegal drugs; or drinking on the job. People would take turns on getting accused. The company had a policy that accusations of this types had to be taken seriously by managment. So this person was thanked for her efforts by managment and then this person would be able to sit back and watch with satisfaction the unfolding results.

People would not be accused if she was not around. She got special attention from varous high level managers. And she got sympathy from other employees for putting up with an intolerable situation. This has all the ear marks of Munchausen-By-Proxy except it is with managers and not doctors.
carlos

Sep 14th, 2008

I worked at Friendly's with a person just like her. She had been transferred many times to many different restaurants. Right after she would be transferred (because of course everyone was going to kill her), many of the managers would be fired. She just recently did it to me at my store. I got fired and several of the employees were interrogated by hr and security. They asked many personal questions about so many off the wall things you wouldn't believe it. She is a nut and so is the dm who not only believed her lies, he is the same type of person and is now reporting all the employees to hr himself. He is now “fixing:” everything and everyone in the store.
Frank

Sep 14th, 2008

Wow, Carlos, that's what Bob Sutton wrote about in “The No Asshole Rule.” That's a very dangerous person…and yes, that Munchausen Syndrome that Prof. Bennett wrote about sounds like it applies. I hope you get away from her…far away.