Those were the words of Tony Nissen, OceanGate’s former engineering director, as he testified at the U.S. Coast Guard hearing into the Titan submersible disaster in June2023. Five people lost their lives, including OceanGate’s founder, Stockton Rush.
I recently watched the Titan documentary on Netflix and was struck by how familiar the story felt, not because of the ocean depths, but because of the dangerous depths of unchecked leadership.
Rush repeatedly dismissed expert concerns. He fired those who challenged him.
He reportedly said: “This is how we are doing it, period. I’ve looked at it. I don’t want anybody in this company who is uncomfortable with what we are doing here.”
That mindset where power overshadows responsibility and challenge is treated as betrayal, is sadly not unique to OceanGate.
It exists in many companies, in many forms. Too often, the warning signs are ignored. People stay silent not because they don’t care, but because they’re scared.
Scared of standing alone, of being labelled difficult, of damaging their careers. It is a common sight; leaders who cause deep damage to culture, to processes, and to people. Their technical or commercial brilliance often masks a much darker cost. A cost that includes burnout, confusion, breakdown of processes, toxicity, high turnover, reputational damage and in the worst cases like Titan, actual lives lost. The most frustrating part? Often, many knew something wasn’t right. But action came too late.
This is where the desire to keep the peace, to avoid difficult conversations, to "give it time", it can all serve to empower wrong leadership, protect dysfunction and punish the whistle-blowers or truth-tellers.
That’s why diverse leadership teams aren’t a nice-to-have; they’re essential. Not just diversity of background, but of mindset, age, experience, and voice.
We need people who will challenge groupthink, who will speak up early, and who will be heard. Because silence isn’t always a lack of insight; it’s often the weight of fear.
When culture protects the wrong people, it risks everything.
Leadership isn’t about being right. It’s about being accountable.
It’s about listening when it’s hard and acting when it’s necessary, remembering that the true cost of ignoring dysfunction is often paid by everyone else, not just leaders.
