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Last week's column about almost-crazy bosses created some
interesting e-mails to this writer. One from a lady in
Oklahoma who stated that these kind of people should not be
GM’s because the word could get around that GM’s do weird
things. Another from Texas said I should have named “the
bastard” to let the world know who he is. (I could because
he is deceased, however he does have a family who might not
appreciate it). And I got one from a high profile guy who
mentioned two prominent bosses he had worked for who had
similar traits. And, some telephone responses as well.
Since this seems to be such a hot item please e-mail me any
incidents that may have happened to you. I’ll be happy to
print them. I’ll protect your name, call letters, and the
GM’s name.
Here are a few more from my past.
This particular GM had a terrific personality and was quite
a PR person for his group. He was liked by advertisers and
those at various civic clubs. But INSIDE the stations he was
another…shall we say animal. As a consultant I witnessed
some of his anger moments including the screaming, dress
down of his department heads…in the hall…so all could hear.
I also heard that one day he became so angry at that he
picked up a typewriter and hurled in through a window. He
retired from the business which is a blessing.
Another GM was something else. I was his PD. We had traveled
by car a hundred miles to hire a competitor’s key disc
jockey. It was a dinner meeting. The GM became very drunk.
It was time to DRIVE home. I suggested that I drive. He said
that he was absolutely fine, and was not drunk. The weaving
of the car at 70 miles an hour was a horrible experience. I
did not think we would make it back. As we got to within
twenty miles of the radio station he slurred, “Let’s listen
to the guys in the mobile unit and studio to see what is
going on”. He turned on the mobile radio just in time to
hear the studio disc jockey and mobile newsman joke with
each other. The GM was not amused at all. He said,
“Burkhart, get on my unit, and fire both of those guys”. I
said, “Well, why don’t I talk to them in the morning” hoping
that a sobering up of the GM would give him a sunnier
disposition. “No, do it now…or you’ll be just as bad as they
are…not paying attention to detail”. So, not wanting to lose
my job, I called them on the mobile, and told them what the
GM heard, and they were not to report for work tomorrow. I
was upset to be in that position. Perhaps I should have
refused and been fired…I’ve thought about it a lot. But, the
good news was that the GM did sober up overnight and the
guys were working again the next day. I know because I WAS
THERE!!!! Hmmmmm.
The long and short of it is….I learned some lessons from
these GM’s. They walked where I did not care to. Therefore,
I tried with every thought to be a good boss…knowing all the
while that there would be some employees who would not see
me in a good light. And, I knew I would have to make some
staff moves that were for the good of the station, but that
would definitely bruise some employee’s feelings. Being a GM
is not always fun!!
e-mail Kent
kent@kentburkhart.com
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