I watched from the corner of the boardroom as an executive struggled to respond in real time to a potential disaster.

His company was preparing to relaunch the construction of the world’s tallest and most environmentally sustainable skyscraper. The incomplete structure already stood 831 metres high. Now, the team had received credible reports that a large section of its glass exterior had fallen from the 60th floor and plunged to the ground.

We did not yet know whether anyone had been injured or killed, but it was a possibility. When the CEO bustled into the room for an emergency briefing, something extraordinary happened. The leader in charge of the comms team told her there was nothing to worry about. Everything was under control. In fact, nothing had happened.

The disaster scenario was not real. It was part of a business simulation I’d written then brought to life with a talented team of actors. It was designed to expose how executives influence others and make decisions under pressure.

I’d watched hundreds of executives confront this same situation. I had seen them investigate, hesitate, consult, take control, panic and occasionally make matters worse. Denying the incident entirely was a new one. It remains the only time I have stopped the simulation to examine a participant’s reasoning before allowing events to continue.

Simulations reveal something that conventional promotion processes frequently miss. Making a snap decision quickly under pressure can look like leadership. Exercising wise judgement is something else entirely.

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