Sound familiar?
One way of achieving this is by appearing to be competent.
How?
"The fly on the back of a water buffalo thinks that it's taller than the buffalo." That fly is the IB who takes credit for all the hard work the buffalo (employees) achieves.
The 'best' IBs are typically the best liars because they are better and comfortable at lying and because they genuinely think they are telling the truth.
They steal credit so skillfully that they convince themselves and others that work gets done because of them.
The reality is IBs claim credit for their employees' work. And in the spirit of Keep Job at all Cost, before the employees get too senior and become a threat to their position, IBs get rid of them by moving them out.
Hence IBs not only are toxic to a high-performing culture, they destroy the talent pool.
The irony is despite their destructive behaviors, some of their bosses think IBs deliver results and thus reward and promote them.
This is the equivalent of rewarding leeches that are s—ing the lifeblood of their host!