Stop Treating These 3 Underperformers Like Protected Species

How to spot (and stop) the koalas sabotaging your culture: nepotists, jerks, and ass-kissers.

In Australia, koalas are a protected species. When one of the leaders in our No Bullsh!t Leaders Club started talking about the “koalas” in his company, I knew exactly what he meant.

Working with koalas can be infuriating. They don’t play by the same rules, or observe the same cultural standards as everyone else. It’s almost as if they’re trying to see how far they can go before someone brings them into line.

And the more they get away with, the more emboldened they become.

In this episode, I explore three different breeds of koala:

1. The founder’s nephew
2. The talented jerk
3. The ass-kisser

I give you some vital tips to deal with each breed, whether they work in your team, or they’re just an annoying peer you have to live with.

Links mentioned in this episode:

No Bullsh!t Leadership episodes:

Ep.240: The Talented Jerk

Ep.314: Surviving Office Politics

High-Performance Leadership Program link:

Leadership Beyond the Theory

————————

You can connect with me at:

Website: https://www.yourceomentor.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yourceomentor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourceomentor

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martin-moore-075b001/

————————

Our mission here at Your CEO Mentor is to improve the quality of leaders, globally. 

Your boss wants more with less. Your team wants less, full stop. You're stuck in the middle.

Leadership Beyond the Theory is 9 weeks to promotion-ready leadership.

2,800+ leaders from 150+ organisations. 99% would recommend.

Doors are now open for the June 2026 cohort, they close Fri 26 June!

Join the cohort here: https://go.leadershipbeyondthetheory.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.