The 9 Toxic Manager Styles That Are Sabotaging Your Leadership Career
In the world of high-stakes leadership, one mega project stands as a cautionary tale of ambition gone awry. The UK’s HS2 high-speed rail initiative.
Plagued by ballooning costs (now exceeding £100 billion against initial estimates), repeated delays pushing operations beyond 2033, scope reductions, governance failures and "collective failures" in contracting and delivery, HS2 exemplifies how toxic management styles compound into systemic disaster.
This piece really hits home about how leadership is more than just skill it’s about alignment and trust. It reminded me of a time in grad school when group projects felt chaotic because no one was upfront about expectations. I realized that having someone to clarify tasks could make all the difference, almost like wishing for a Do my Master level class option, so I could focus on learning the principles of integrity driven leadership instead of getting stuck in administrative chaos.