Whether you know it or not, your organization has its own culture. It takes shape through the personality, actions, and work of the leadership and the workforce. The interactions with each other and your customers all continually add to your company culture. In the end, it is in either a positive or negative way. A toxic culture creates an environment where sometimes even well-intended people act in ways that they are not proud of.
“Culture eats strategy for lunch.” — Peter Drucker
Culture drowns some organizations while other companies are propelled by it. For example, Jane is known for her slightly off-key and mildly insulting humour. In a performance review, her boss noted this ability as one of her strengths — “It makes one of the boys.” She gets the laughs. However, she cringes every time she makes a joke at someone else’s expense. Jane despises the fact that her behaviour directly contradicts her values. Moreover, she continues, just to fit in.
Then there is Mark, whose leaders praise him for his ability to pick the “right” person for a job. Deep in his heart, though, Mark is ashamed of himself. He knows that he is often choosing the “acceptable” person over the right person. Correspondingly, in his organization, that means picking an architype of the leadership group, not the best fit or the high potential performer.
Why People Violate Their Values
In my experience, people violating their values has more to do with the culture that the people work in and less to do with the individual’s flaws. Generally, there are far too few outstanding leaders in our organizations. Moreover, far too many who are subpar or downright awful. Leadership is difficult. We need to select leaders with performance traits that are best suited for the role. Otherwise, the manager experiences internal conflict. They are destined to underperform.
Culture is a potent driver of human thought and behaviour. It tells us what is sacred and irreverent, right, and wrong, ethical, and evil. It supplies a guide that keeps us in line and ensures we do, say and think the right thing. Right, according to the tribe that we belong to. Moreover, today, our organizations are our tribes.
Our tribe is so vital to us, and so powerful that far too often the rules of our organizational culture . This force dominates the values and the norms of the other cultures we belong to — national, community, even family. This behaviour is not necessarily bad unless the organization we belong to has a toxic culture.
The Power of a Toxic Culture
If you are wondering whether your organizational culture is unhealthy, here are some of the signs I have seen.
Pressure to Cover
Correspondingly at work, the act of “covering” is hiding or downplaying aspects of yourself or your identity to fit in. Christie Smith and Kenji Yoshino’s research shows that covering affects the majority of people in the workplace. Moreover, that people try to cover everything from being a mother or a person of colour to the non-macho sensitivity that some may consider being un-masculine.
Covering has severe and adverse effects for the people who feel they cannot bring their full selves to work. More, if there are essential values or behaviours that our culture forces us to downplay or abolish altogether. This behaviour includes things like fairness, a belief in meritocracy, respect for other people, and compassion. Our team members will suffer too.
Working with Hyper-Competitiveness
Peter Glick, Jennifer Berdahl, and Marianne Cooper have studied “masculinity contests.” This phenomenon occurs in companies where norms, for both men and women, revolve around the need always to prove one’s prowess and drive to win. This behaviour results in pressure to put work more than anything else in life. The people in these companies tolerate bullies — sometimes even laud them. The resulting culture is a place where toxic leaders thrive.
Sabotage is a common tactic. People do not feel safe. They suffer Illness and burnout. Often sexual harassment is prevalent. The constant fear, vigilance, and adrenaline that is needed to survive in these organizations result in compromised intelligence, poor decision making, and hits to the bottom line.
Pressure to Overwork
Many of us work from dawn to dusk. Even if we work in an organization where people and collaboration are valued. For reasons having to do with our psychology and insecurities, the demands of high-performance firm, and our “work-in-our-pocket world” drives us in this direction.
So, a culture of overwork develops insidiously: that extra push on a big project seems logical at the time, and we stay late. Alternatively, a few emails on the weekend slowly turns into a full day of work. Then it happens repeatedly, and we even wake up in the middle of the night to agonize or check our phones. When this is the expectation at work, we often behave in ways that are opposing to our values. Moreover, we get trapped in a cycle of unhappiness, compromised creativity, and lower productivity.
What Can We Do About Culture?
“With the right people, culture, and values, you can accomplish great things.”—Tricia Griffith
When the culture forces us to compromise our best selves, it is not suitable for our organizations or us. However, let us face it: you are not going to be able to change the culture of your entire organization single-handedly.
What can you do?
Create a resonant micro-culture where you have the most chances of succeeding on your team. Moreover, while it may be easier to do these things when you are the team leader, it is not critical that you be in a position of power.
Here is how:
Start with Yourself
The toxic culture saps our energy and resilience. It is frequently easy for us to forget that we need to first take care of ourselves. So, as the airlines tell you “put your oxygen mask on first.” Figure out what you need to be most effective — and happy — at work.
- When was the last time that you thought seriously about your future? You need to take into consideration your career and your life.
- How is your health?
- Which of your values has fallen by the wayside, causing you to feel conflicted about yourself or your organization?
Self-reflection of this nature will result in clarity about the kind of climate and environment you want — and need — at work. It is even more powerful if you bring others into the conversation.
Repair Relationships
Start by making a plan to fix work relationships that have soured or that you find to be emotionally draining. As well, dysfunctional cultures will often drive us to behave in ways that harm relationships. It is easy to join the crowd and become that person who always criticizes and complains. To progress the culture around you, take control of these situations. It is best if you take responsibility for your attitude and actions.
Ask yourself,
- Am I fostering cynicism instead of hope?
- Might I have been too hard on my colleagues during these past few months?
- Do some people see me as the person to complain to about the boss/project/company?
Be honest. However, it would be good if you were not too hard on yourself, either. You are just setting up a baseline for improvement.
The next step will be to work through the problems with the people in your circle. Start by taking a deep breath. It would be best if you got ready to use your emotional intelligence. Also, plan a time to talk. Preferably you should find a spot outside of the workplace. At a minimum, ensure that you do not have a hard stop at the end of your time together. It will take time. You do not want to lose momentum.
An excellent way to begin your conversation is to talk about yourself. Speak frankly about:
- what you hope for at work
- what you have been reflecting on
- what you want to change
Sometimes, an apology may be in order. Your colleague, like you, may not be proud of their part in the relationship. Your honesty and vulnerability may set the stage for a productive conversation and changes on both sides.
Form A Coalition
Once you have done the groundwork, it is time to agree to make lasting changes to your team culture. With one or two others, including your boss, plan a series of meetings where people have an opportunity to talk about what
- is important to them at work
- they want now and, in the future
- need to be fulfilled
It is best if you take deliberate steps to articulate shared values. Likewise, create shared rules of engagement to guide everyone’s behaviour. Codify them. You may choose to call it a “team code of conduct.”
Nevertheless, remember, though, that as you begin to live your new culture, things will not change overnight. Most old habits die hard. Moreover, the pressure of your broader company culture is still genuine. So, while you hold yourselves accountable for building your resonant micro-culture, you will also need to be patient, supportive, and ready to forgive yourself and others.
At the end of the day, it is all too easy to blame a dysfunctional company culture for our misbehaviour. However, you do not have to suffer the toxicity that characterizes your organization. You can do something about it by using your emotional intelligence skills and choosing to act in ways that you can be proud of.
Concluding Thoughts
“A smart manager will establish a culture of gratitude. Expand the appreciative attitude to suppliers, vendors, delivery people, and of course, customers.” — Harvey Mackay
Burnout is a significant contributor to creating a toxic company culture. Even when you think that you are doing everything else right, if a colleague is burnt out, it will not matter. Be vigilant as there are many ways to help employees combat burnout. Though, the most successful strategy is understanding how they work best and giving them time to breathe. Be lenient and flexible with employees, especially during times when their workload is high.
Your company culture influences how your teamwork and customers percieve your business. Please do not ignore the importance of it. Takes small steps to incorporate these tips into your business. Culture can make all the difference in the world.
Note: Annie McKee, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania was the inspiration for this post. She provides excellent insights in this area. Learn more from Ms. McKee’s books How to Be Happy at Work, Primal Leadership, Resonant Leadership, and Becoming a Resonant Leader.
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