Discussion Questions

I. Why climb Everest?

A. Why do people choose to climb Everest?
B. What type of person tries to ascend the world’s tallest mountain?
C. What personal qualities does it take to succeed?
D. Do you see any similarities between a high-altitude mountain climber and an Business
student aspiring to become a business leader?
E. Based upon this analysis, can you draw any conclusions about the dangers that may lie
ahead for you in pursuit of your career objectives?

II. Causes of the Tragedy

A. What caused this tragedy?
B. What types of mistaken judgments and choices did the climbers make?
C. Consider your own business experiences for a moment. What causes people to ignore
rules in organizations?
D. Did these teams function effectively? Why or why not?
E. What is your evaluation of Fischer and Hall as team leaders?
F. Are we being a bit too hard on Hall and Fischer? Might tragedies such as this one simply
be inevitable on the slopes of Everest?
G. Having conducted all of this analysis, what would you conclude is the root cause of this
catastrophe?
H. Can we identify a root cause? Why or why not?

III. Constructive Dissent and Psychological Safety

A. What factors created a climate in which people felt uncomfortable expressing dissent and
engaging in a candid exchange of ideas and opinions?
B. Moving beyond Everest, what factors might inhibit constructive dissent in organizations?
C. Is dissent always appropriate? Under what conditions do leaders want to encourage
dissent? When should they strive to discourage dissent?

IV. Lessons for Business Leaders

A. What are the lessons for business leaders from our analysis of this tragedy?
B. Drawing on your own experiences, can you identify a situation in which some of these
factors contributed to an organizational failure? How might you take corrective action to
prevent that situation from occurring once again?
C. What qualities make Hall and Fischer great mountaineers? Are these the same attributes
required to lead an effective team? Does this same tension exist in business
organizations?
D. D. Can we train people to become better team leaders and more effective high-stakes
decision-makers? If so, how?

*We will go over the discussion questions in class. You need to answer these
questions, along with the assignment questions.