Bangalore: "Why Smart Executives Fail" was a book published by Sydney Finkelstein, the Steven Roth Professor of Management at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. The book spoke about how big companies turned out to be complete failures due to the habits of their seniors or executives. These habits are registered in some of the leading executives of these days which can be warning signs for them. Listed below are the habits that Finkelstein described in a 2004 article:

I and My Companies Rule the World This is the most sinister habit, as it appears very enviable. But don't you think a company should not aim at dominating the market rather shape the future of its market? The failed leaders fail to realize that they are at the mercy of change in circumstances. They feel they control events and underestimate the changing trends in the market. The illusion of personal supremacy is what traps CEOs. They felt that they have all the control over the company and as far as others in the company, they are just to execute their personal vision for the company. Samsung's CEO Kun-Hee Lee was successful with electronics which made him feel he could equally do well in automobiles and he invested $5 million on the oversaturated market. He just entered the auto business because he loved cars, there was no business case. The warning sign here is lack of respect.