Can you detox a poisoned culture?
What exactly is a toxic culture?
Is it — similar to Fukushima (so they say) — a largely unpredictable natural event that one day strikes an otherwise normal company? Or is it a bet on top talent and outperformance completely gone wrong? Or is it rather a few inherent inadequacies that slowly begin to rot and without resistance infest an ever-larger area?
Depending on how you feel about these questions, you might see the problem in a few employees who don’t know how to behave, in a largely unmotivated workforce or in the responsibility of the company itself and its (top) management.
All the articles I discuss, however, agree that a poisoned culture is harmful and not conducive to productivity. Because it drives out top talent (3), promotes dysfunction in the organization (4), makes employees passionless and unwell (5) and creates low morale and a retention problem. (9)
While cultural issues such as low employee engagement, siloed work streams or high turnover can have a negative impact on business performance in the short-term, a toxic culture can also damage the reputation of a brand permanently. (9)
Every company has its culture, yes, but only a few of them do care whether it is good or bad. Top management, in particular, does not seem to know what the mood at the base is like. (8) According to research 83% of senior leaders stress the importance of culture. In only 29% of organizations however leaders behave according to their communicated culture. (9)
Early signs for a toxic culture can be seen in growing absenteeism, mediocre performances, unproductive meetings, gossiping, and bullying (3) and disruptive behaviour. [8] Other symptoms are rumours, cliques, silos, team sabotage, double standards, and organizational inconsistencies. (4)
A positive culture, on the other hand, is fluid with movement that produces success and productivity. (4)
How does a poisoned culture emerge and what are its effects?
An office is full of negative energy and a tense atmosphere when people are unhappy. Certainly not a place for new ideas, creativity or growth. (1) Employees do not perform well, complain, or leave the company. (6) You will see negative reviews on Glassdoor and Kununu, gossip, intrigue, scheming, lack of cooperation, bad behaviour, mobbing. Perks are more important than tasks, or money is wasted on things that don’t matter to your employees. (7)
Some authors state that individual toxic employees are to blame for low morale, lack of cooperation and knowledge sharing, loss of the best talent and finally poor business decisions. (4)
Others take a more differentiated view of the root causes. They cite a lack of recognition, career advancement, meaning in work. (5) There are no clear corporate goals and values. There is trench warfare between executives, only vertical communication channels are used, objections and open debates are not tolerated or smugly stalled. The bad news is not openly discussed and problems cannot be addressed. The focus lies on the performance of the individual and transparency on factors determining promotions is limited. (8)
On officevibe.com I have found a very nice and meaningful infographic with 10 company culture killers. The most important being big egoes, micromanagement, bureaucracy, dishonesty, lack of transparency, job insecurity, and never offering praise. (10)
A toxic culture can lead to organizational crime and misconduct
But let’s be clear: a toxic company culture isn’t just not nice or kind of undesirable. There are higher stakes at risk. VW’s cheating practices, for example, had a lot to do with their corporate culture, investigators concluded. There are several elements that can promote a toxic corporate culture, such as strain, treating employees poorly, unrealistic targets, the fear to speak out, blame-shifting or a wide disconnect between the tone at the top and what employees experience every day. (2)
Can there be good reasons to endure and support a poisoned work culture?
When I asked my network for comments on toxic culture I got a very interesting input by Daniela Melone. She is asking in what way a poisoned work culture could be supportive in a given moment? It is possible that working in such circumstances is not the worst evil. (12)
What can you do about it?
Acceptance
Companies do not usually realize early on that there is an issue with their culture. Above all, top management finds it difficult to see that the problem is structural. Employees usually notice it much more quickly when the official values and mission statements no longer coincide with the culture they live in. This already hints at one of the measures that every company should take: establish ways for employees to communicate their feelings directly to top management.
Therefore the first step in transforming your workplace is admitting there’s a problem (5) and accepting that it needs work. (1)
Is there an easy way to corporate happiness?
Some of the authors do think so. They believethat a senior manager should have the ability to put their culture right single-handedly. Here’s a quote: «Evaluate the culture. Managers need to figure out what they want the culture to look like, create three to five guidelines, and announce and communicate them to the team. » (3)
I could imagine that this worked quite well in the good old times. Unfortunately, a significant part of senior leaders still believes in this. For the rest of this blog post I will not follow up this opinion.
Communicate plans for change
However, doing it a bit more seriously is not so difficult either. There are a lot of quick wins and low hanging fruits along the way and we just need to pick them up. The first, the easiest and one of the most important steps to a healthier culture is to admit the problem and let employees know that you are aware of it. Communicating them your plans of change and that you will seek their feedback is the first step to rebuild trust and get their buy-in. (4) (6)
Assessment
Culture cannot be changed from scratch. There is no reset button. The following will not work: «So how do you start the change? With a clean slate. This will include changing your goals, the strategies that are used to attain that goal and the day to day tasks your employees get.» (1)
Nearly everyone agrees that you have to find out what is going wrong first. John Webster even remarks «The biggest mistake I see is people not making an assessment of what is causing the underlying problems first». This can be done by senior leaders, of course. In assessing the toxic culture they «shift their cultural lenses to observe, discern, detect, and identify ways in which an organization’s culture can be aligned and changed. » (4) HR can be of help too by identifying root causes and employee conflicts and measuring employee engagement. (5)
However, as we have seen above, senior leaders (and neither is HR) are not very sensitive when it comes to understanding employees’ feelings and the issues affecting your culture. Here again, there is just one (very easy) way to go: ask your employees! Request their feedback. Surveys may be helpful, especially in larger companies, but don’t forget direct conversations. (6)
Employees can get together in focus groups to discuss and assess the most important issues. By doing this the change process again contributes to rebuilding trust and engagement.
In addition, I might first plan a workshop to find out what employees actually regard as toxic, which areas are affected and how it manifests itself. I owe this idea to my colleague Daniela Melone (12). She would also want to know what works well and how the team copes. In my experience the question «What about your working environment makes you hesitate to get up in the morning?» can also be very helpful.
Take in suggestions
«Once you know the issues that your organization is facing, you can take corrective action that will truly matter.» (6) No, I don’t think so. As little as senior leaders know the reasons, as little do they know the solutions.
Often company leaders think that top management has to develop and implement culture concepts. Although it is rather middle and lower management who create the culture because they feel and live it every day. (8)
Once again this is not enough. Once again this procedure misses a great chance. Once again: let’s ask our employees — or even better: let them find the solutions!
Ask employees what would make them happier. What is to be changed, abolished, newly introduced? Every single employee has to be involved. (1) By the way, keep in mind that managers are employees as well! As a manager, from team leader to CEO, have casual conversations with as many people in the company as possible. (3)
Let people draw a picture, visualize, see, experience what the new culture could feel like. Employees often sparkle with ideas as soon as they have a vivid picture in front of their eyes. (12)
Possible actions
Of course, there is a wide variety of actions that can help in any given situation. It is important, however, that you focus on actions that make your employees happier. Be aware that your employees will mirror the company’s attitude towards them and show the same attitude towards customers. (1)
Values
In many cases it is essential and the first important step that organizations recommit to their values. You might want to add some values that have been suggested by employees, transparency or integrity for example. Employees must feel that they are crucial in and for a company’s value system. Then, communicate those values, what they really mean and how they should manifest themselves in everyday life. (6)
Leadership style
Leadership topics are likely to be a central issue. You can find a lot of suggestions in all articles. Just to mention a few: no more secrets (open communication), open-door policy (1), be a consistent leader (3), inspire and unite employees (4), support the team (focus on the team, not the individuals), share the vision. (11)
Participation
To improve corporate culture, it is vital to foster an environment where people have a say in things that concern them. (4) Make sure that employees are able to report issues that hinder them and to provide feedback. Help them make their voices heard. (7)
But this is only one side of the coin. Senior leaders and managers must actively participate in the day-to-day business to show that they care and to feel the vibe. (8)
Put Employees First
Yes, most important: put employees first! Show them that you care about their wellbeing, encourage them to grow. Let them feel that they are supported and that they are important for the company’s success. Offer flexibility to create work-life balance. (11)
Implementing
When implementing everything comes down to communication, to walk the talk and lead by example. It takes time and a long breath to change a work culture because habits are powerful and the «old» culture also gave security and comfort. (12) Therefore as a leader and/or a change agent be prepared to continually communicate and explain and to live the new culture every day.
Following-up on cultural change
As culture is transforming make sure to set two-way feedback in place. Honest communication is vital to help employees understand that leaders are serious about the change. On the other hand, if employees are able to communicate their feelings to leadership the company can track progress and identify areas that still need attention. (6)
It’s also time now to pay attention to cultural differences. It might not be enough to set up a homogeneous company-wide culture, because not everything works exactly the same everywhere. (8)
How can you find out whether you are on the right track? Culture cannot be measured, but behaviours and consequences of dysfunctional culture — sick days, presenteeism, dismissals, employee engagement, employer image, followers, to name but a few. (8) Keep an eye on this data — and an open ear to your employees!
Why the h… should we do all this?
A great culture is key to a great company. It makes for loyal, engaged and motivated employees and boosts your employer brand. (11) Happy employees contribute a lot to the success of a company: 10% less sick leaves, six times more motivated, twice as long in the company and twice as productive. (7)
It’s a long way to go, yes, but it will be worth it. Your company will get the detox it needs and the results will show it. (1)
And once again: Put Employees First. «A motivated and energised workforce will do more for the success of your organisation than any marketing campaign. When you take care of your people, they will be inspired to do well and to give back.» (11)
Articles mentioned in the text
(1) Jenny Kido: 8 Steps to Detox and Transform Your Toxic Workplace Environment
(2) Benjamin van Rooij, Adam Fine, and Judy van der Graaf: Detoxing Corporate Culture
(3) Hannah Pitstick: How to detect and defuse a toxic workplace
(4) Nikki Walker: Changing Toxic Organizational Culture
(5) Sammi Caramela: 3 Telltale Signs of a Toxic Workplace (and How to Solve It)
(6) Gwen Moran: How to rebuild trust in a toxic workplace
