What motivates Tony Hayward?

I've never met the ex-CEO of BP, Tony Hayward. But as a casual observer of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, I've been fascinated by the man's behaviour. Why behave as he did? Let's look at his now infamous line, "I'd like my life back."

My personal thanks to www.todayshow.com for permitting me to show their YouTube clip.


Later on, pure Tony

"The Gulf of Mexico explosion was a terrible tragedy for which - as the man in charge of BP when it happened - I will always feel a deep responsibility, regardless of where blame is ultimately found to lie," Hayward said.
                              - as reported by Roland Jackson of The Age newspaper, July 27, 2010.

Hayward claims ownership of the CEO role ("the man in charge of BP") and claims to feel a deep responsibility. Yet in the same sentence he distances himself from any blame. Apparently, he's not responsible for the mistakes of others within BP. Tony Hayward was able to accept the privilege but not the responsibility of being BP's CEO.

What could his motivation be?

To explain, I drew upon the work of Professors Edward L. Deci and Richard M. Ryan from the University of Rochester. They developed a theory of motivation called Self Determination Theory and kindly allow us to use their work.

I believe Hayward's behaviour - his desire to have his life back and that blame lies with others - can be explained by two motivations. The first is his lack of Empathy or "the intimate appreciation of how another is feeling"; and the second is his need for Integrated Functioning, meaning "the degree to which we act in sync with our thoughts and feelings."

Hayward's actions and responses make sense only if he cannot understand how others might feel about their plight and if he truly believes he is not responsible for the actions of others at BP. In Tony Hayward's mind at least, he doesn't care and the oil spill was not his fault.

If you want to negotiate with others, even corporate psychopaths, first understand their motivations.