Leadership, politics, and administrative reform at the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico

Abstract

This paper draws on theories of leadership to explain administrative problems at the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico that led the U.S. President, in an unprecedented action, to remove the U.S. Section's Commissioner in 2005. The analysis proceeds from a detailed review of the history and organizational features of the U.S. Section. While popular accounts of the U.S. Section's leadership difficulties invoke an endogenous explanation of leadership failure emphasizing leadership traits and skills, we argue that this explanation should be coupled with an exogenous explanation for leadership failure. Focusing on the U.S. Section's altered administrative environment since the late-1980s, the paper argues that heightened politicization associated with its changing operational environment and mission increased the structural risks of executive failure. The paper concludes by reflecting on the theoretical and practical lessons learned from the U.S.Section's post-2000 administrative difficulties.

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