When a horse race is rigged, it can cost a company more than just the time and money invested in the search for its next chief executive. It can also have lingering effects on the company’s ability to fill key management positions and cultivate a culture of leadership development.
The classic succession “horse race” pits two or more senior executives in a battle over performance, with the winner becoming the next chief executive officer. While some governance observers criticize the approach, many admired companies have employed it to find exceptional leaders.
A horse race is an intense contest that can take months to complete, and the outcome can have profound implications for a company. This type of high stakes leadership competition isn’t well suited to all organizations, but for those that do, it can offer significant benefits.
As a spectacle, horse races can be thrilling for spectators and exhilarating for the participants. But they can also be a frustrating experience for owners and trainers. The pressure to win is enormous, and horses are prone to injuries. But racing isn’t just about winning; it’s about the financial rewards and the excitement that the sport generates.
The financial rewards of horse racing are tremendous, bringing in investors who put their “both fists full” into the sport. “We pay out purses that are among the largest of any track in the country,” says Faraldo. “And the revenue that comes from the adjacent casino is enough to put a lot of dollars in the hands of breeders, jockeys and other people.”
Unfortunately, those huge payouts have contributed to a culture in which racing insiders prioritize speed over endurance. As a result, the sport’s breeders have produced successive generations of thoroughbreds that are bred for speed over durability, and the number of injuries to horses has skyrocketed.
The death of a top-notch thoroughbred, Havnameltdown, this year has highlighted the challenges of the sport, including sloppy tracks and an increasing number of injuries. But the most troubling issue, to many outsiders, is that racetracks and horsemen are paid through private investment and not taxpayer dollars. Veterinary records and the postmortem examination of Havnameltdown revealed that she suffered from osteoarthritis, severe degenerative joint disease and bone cysts, or holes in the bones, in all four limbs.