The bold win. Until they fail
Prof. Guy Hochman, a behavioral economics expert, analyzes the decision to remove two senior Mossad officials from their positions following the failure of the plan to topple the regime in Iran. He argues that punishing initiators of failed ideas harms psychological safety and the willingness to take calculated risks, and warns of a dangerous message to an intelligence organization after October 7.
Prof. Guy Hochman, an expert in behavioral economics and decision-making, analyzes the decision to remove two senior Mossad officials from their positions, as reported last week. The two were associated with the Israeli plan to create conditions for toppling the regime in Iran, which did not achieve its goal. Hochman argues that if the reports are correct, this is a dangerous organizational mistake. He explains that once management examines an idea and adopts it, it becomes the organization's idea, not the initiator's. Punishing those who dared to think sends a message to employees that it is not worth taking risks. He cites Albert Bandura, who showed that people also learn from what happens to others, and Amy Edmondson, who coined the term 'psychological safety'. Hochman emphasizes the need to distinguish between negligence and error, and warns of 'outcome bias' – judging decisions solely by their outcomes. He calls for examining the entire decision-making chain, not just the links that are convenient to remove. According to him, an organization that punishes failure gets fewer people willing to make mistakes, and this is especially dangerous for an intelligence organization after October 7.