AccelleWell: Surviving a Toxic CEO

By September 2022, Elizabeth Hooper had been working for 100 days as chief human resources officer at AccelleWell, a contract development and manufacturing organization in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Just before her arrival, AccelleWell was acquired by the private equity firm Evenhuis Equity Partners. The company’s chief executive officer who hired Hooper was fired shortly after she started and was replaced by a new “fixer” who was brought in to turn around the company. Initially, Hooper thought that she could work well with the new leader, who voiced his support for Hooper publicly at an all-staff meeting and approved her plan to add new positions to the human resources team. However, he soon proved to be a toxic leader, making sexist and ageist comments and firing various executive team members. Hooper wondered if she could hold on to her own job. Was there any hope that she could still be successful as part of the executive team that had transformed AccelleWell into a leading life sciences employer?

This case is suitable for undergraduate and graduate courses in organizational behaviour, human resources, and leadership. Specific content areas include leadership, toxic leadership, workplace incivility, workplace bullying, resilience, derailment, and organizational culture. This case focuses on a newly hired member of an executive team who struggles when the chief executive officer who hired her is replaced by the private equity firm that owns the business. In this case, the protagonist struggles to navigate her relationship with the new chief executive officer, who shows all signs of a toxic leader. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to<br><br><ul><li>evaluate the general risks and requirements of executive roles after a private equity firm purchases the company;</li><li>assess the impact of a toxic leader;</li><li>develop strategies for interrupting incivility, bullying, and toxic leadership in the workplace; and</li><li>formulate plans for the best way to bounce back after suffering a career setback.</li></ul>

• organizational behavior
• leadership
• professional, scientific, and technical services
• toxic leadership
• followership
• workplace incivility
• workplace bullying
• resilience
• derailment
• organizational change
• organizational culture
• sexism
• ageism
• risk assessment
• leadership strategies
• strategic management
• corporate culture
• team dynamics
• employee well-being
• conflict resolution
• workplace ethics.