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Ten Ways to Tell If You Have a Sociopath on Your Board
October 29, 2025
Ten Ways to Tell If You Have a Sociopath on Your Board
By Glenn Shepard
If you’ve ever found yourself thinking, “This person is brilliant but something feels off,” you might not be imagining things.
Some of the most destructive boardroom conflicts don’t come from incompetence or laziness, they come from personality disorders masquerading as leadership.
In chambers where volunteer leaders often hold real influence over policy, finances, and reputation, having a sociopath on your board isn’t just stressful.
It’s dangerous.
Here are ten warning signs that someone on your board may not just be difficult — they may be a “Sociopath in a Suit”.
1. They charm everyone… at first.
Sociopaths are often the most charismatic people in the room. They know exactly how to flatter you and say what you want to hear. They make a great first impression, but later leave others drained, confused, or divided.
2. They have zero empathy.
They’re incapable of feeling other people’s pain, but they’re great at faking concern when it benefits them. Watch how they respond when a fellow board member, staff member, or volunteer is struggling. Real leaders offer compassion. Sociopaths show annoyance or indifference.
3. They rewrite history.
If a sociopath is caught lying, they don’t just deny it. They revise the story and gaslight everyone who remembers differently. You’ll hear them say things like, “That’s not what I said,” or “You must be misremembering.” Before long, people start doubting their own memory.
4. They divide and conquer.
Healthy boards work as a team. Sociopaths thrive on chaos. They pit members against each other, whisper behind closed doors, and create alliances built on fear and flattery.
If your board suddenly feels like high school drama, look for the person pulling the strings.
5. They crave power, not purpose.
Most board members volunteer because they care about your local business community and believe in the important work that chambers do. But sociopaths care about control.
They’ll hijack committees, overrule bylaws, and bulldoze decisions to serve their ego or personal agenda.
6. They never take responsibility.
When things go wrong, they’re the first to point fingers. When things go right, they’re the first to grab credit. They live by one rule: “It’s never my fault.”
7. They lie easily and often.
They’ll lie about things that don’t even matter, just to test how much they can get away with. A small exaggeration here, a misleading statement there and before you know it, your entire chamber’s trust has been compromised.
8. They have no real conscience.
You can’t guilt-trip a sociopath. They’ll violate ethics, confidentiality, or even laws if it serves their interest, and still sleep fine that night. Your stomach might churn, but theirs won’t.
9. They love conflict as long as they can control it.
They’ll stir tension and manufacture a crisis just to stay in the spotlight. But if anyone pushes back, they’ll claim you’re the problem — overly emotional or “not a team player.”
10. They leave a trail of destruction.
Every organization they touch eventually pays the price of broken trust, high turnover, burned-out staff, and good board members quitting in frustration.
What to Do if You Suspect You Have a Sociopath on Your Board
- Document everything. Because sociopaths thrive in chaos, a paper trail is often your best defense.
- Follow your bylaws to the letter. They’ll exploit any procedural weakness.
- Never confront them alone. Always have a witness.
- Protect your staff. No one deserves to be bullied or manipulated under the guise of leadership.
- Remember that you can’t “fix” a sociopath. You can only contain their influence or remove it entirely.
As a chamber exec, your job isn’t just to serve your business community, it’s to protect the chamber that serves it.
Most board conflicts are fixable with communication and training.
But if you’re dealing with a sociopath, that’s not a personnel issue. It’s a psychological landmine in your boardroom.
Spot the signs early and trust your gut.
About the Author
Glenn Shepard has served as president of Glenn Shepard Seminars in Nashville, TN for 30 years. Recognized nationwide as one of today’s leading authorities on management and leadership skills for small businesses and frontline supervisors, Glenn is also well known in the chamber world as the publisher of ChamberExecOpenings.com — the largest job board for chamber execs in America. He has personally invested over $100,000 of his own funds to provide this resource free to the chamber industry for the past 15 years. For additional free resources, visit www.GlennShepard.com.©Copyright 2025 Glenn Shepard Seminars. This article may not be reproduced in any way without the express written consent of the copyright owner.
