In reply to Shaun Coffey.

Even if good leaders leave behind good people, a bad system will defeat them. As Churchill said, “First we shape our structures, and then our structures shape us“. Think about who is the most important person on board a ship. Is it the Captain, the Navigator or the Engineer? Actually, it’s the Architect, in my opinion, because the initial design influences everything else.

A good leader may be able to do good things in spite of a bad system, but when he or she leaves, then the system flaws come out again. The US Navy did a study on this, showing that rotating commanding officers every two years ensured that those who stayed longer, such as NCO's, were able to revert the culture to their preferred steady state. That is how misogynistic cultures are able to continue, even when policies and senior staff try to root them out.