I would be cautious on your labeling them as incompetent--perhaps they are very competent at protecting their positions, you just have a different agenda.
Of course, I don't know your exact situation. But, people act according to their alignment of incentives. If one is more motivated by the work they're doing rather than the pay they're receiving, then you get one set of behaviors. Likewise, if they're motivated by power, you get another set of behaviors. It's folly to assign your values and incentives onto somebody else and call them incompetent because they're different.
You may just be golfing, and they're bowling, and looking at the scoreboard, you think they have a miserable score, when in fact, they're a strike away from a perfect game.
If you understand how folks like that behave, you can work with them to make decisions that will be in your best (or at least better) interests.
I agree in theory, but it's difficult to align values with someone whose strategy is to shift blame to clients and subordinates due to lack of planning and communication skills. These people create a toxic, reactive working environment and their damage needs to be managed. I don't believe that they bring good things to the table.
I realize that this sounds exceptionally bitter so I am open to the possibility that I have become cynical and am unable to see from outside the lense of my own vision.
Of course, I don't know your exact situation. But, people act according to their alignment of incentives. If one is more motivated by the work they're doing rather than the pay they're receiving, then you get one set of behaviors. Likewise, if they're motivated by power, you get another set of behaviors. It's folly to assign your values and incentives onto somebody else and call them incompetent because they're different.
You may just be golfing, and they're bowling, and looking at the scoreboard, you think they have a miserable score, when in fact, they're a strike away from a perfect game.
If you understand how folks like that behave, you can work with them to make decisions that will be in your best (or at least better) interests.