Insecure bosses, abrasive colleagues, zero transparency: #HowTo counter increasing workplace toxicity

Toxicity is all about constant undermining, bullying, lack of collaboration, passive aggressive behaviour, etc., and the combination of all this can make you feel a little less like yourself when you walk into the workplace. (Illustration by Suneesh K.)

Note to Readers: HowTo is a series designed to give our readers an edge on matters of competitiveness, upskilling/reskilling and knowledge gathering. Essayed in a lucid, snackable format, the series acts as a tutorial that brings together some of the most relevant voices on a subject, so that you benefit the most in your business or career. In this feature, we take a look at countering workplace toxicity.

Toxic cultures define success as winning a cut-throat competition. They reward people for stabbing others in the back. Healthy cultures define success as making a contribution. They reward people for having others’ backs.

- Adam Grant, Organisational Psychologist at Wharton

Almost everyone who has ever worked in the corporate world would have had at least one innings soaked in toxicity. An office is largely an unnatural habitat where people from various backgrounds, cultures, financial strata, regions, religions and habits get together under a common roof to supposedly pursue a common purpose of helping the company do better. In practice, culture (or lack of it) eats strategy for breakfast and waits for lunch.

While toxic insecurity develops right at the top in many places, peer-to-peer toxicity in office is no less abrasive. Poor lines of communication can be a strong reason for increasing workplace politics and sometimes managers try to stymie the flow of information to colleagues. In today’s environment where layoffs are routine, that can be deadly. Often times, an office meeting is a good place to observe. Watch how employees are reacting to the leader’s comments and observations. In a workplace devoid of a psychological safety net, employees would remain silent and speak up only to support the leader’s point of view.

A recent Bloomberg report talked about Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal’s alleged toxic behaviour. A few Ola employees alleged that Aggarwal used Punjabi epithets, tore up presentations and would get angry and shout at employees even for a crooked paper clip or the quality of the printing paper, according to the report. Clearly, he isn’t the only one. Uber founder Travis Kalanick was forced to step down from his executive role after reports of a highly toxic work culture.

All toxic workplaces have one or several of the following characteristics. Watch out for these red flags:

a) A culture of exclusion: A large number of cliques emerge even in a relatively small office. They meet even on weekends to keep up with the politics while also devising the next steps. At office, these cliques do lunch together, gather for coffee but never allow anyone from outside their circles to have a look in.

b) An ultra-gossipy office: Most of the day is spent on messaging platforms, passing on gossip about a particular individual or another rival group in office. This is a sure-shot productivity killer.

c) Micromanagement: A bad manager can come in various forms and a micromanaging boss can be a constant source of pain. This undermines the work of the employee, making her lose her confidence.

d) No boundaries: Every employee needs a space of her own after work. When you start getting mails/texts after 9 pm, it’s a definite red flag. Conference calls that extend into the middle of the night under the pretext of discussing something urgent is also a big sign of things going south.

e) Constant burn-out mode: Employees appear disinterested, overwhelmed and under chronic stress. This can be a direct result of poor work environment, stress or general lack of trust and recognition.

f) Poor lines of communication: Listed last but this is the most obvious one. Lack of messaging clarity can often lead to distrust, insecurity and disillusionment.

Toxicity is all about constant undermining, bullying, lack of collaboration, passive aggressive behaviour, etc., and the combination of all this can make you feel a little less like yourself when you walk into the workplace. Jay Kumar Hariharan, CEO and Executive Coach of Blue Fire Coaching Consultants, says this could be the result of a paternalistic form of society transferring itself to the workplace. So, your boss becomes your benefactor, the patriarchal figure, and you are constantly fighting for attention and resources.

On a philosophical segway, an organisation is a subset of society, he says. “In certain organisations employees are led to believe that the pie is small and one has to indulge in toe-treading, which is about proving that one is more valuable than someone else by trampling upon the other person’s ideas to bring him down. That’s the epitome of toxicity,” he says.

So, how can one control toxicity at a workplace?

As a first step, one should assess whether toxicity exists across the organisation or only among certain factions. Classic signs like lack of enthusiasm and communication, hesitance to approach managers, aversion to feedback, absence of gratitude and high employee turn-over indicate a problem that needs to be fixed, says Banu Bala, VP (HR & Operations), MSys Technologies.

One way forward is to use one’s discretion and engage in ‘cultural proficiency continuum’ and train people to bridge language and cultural barriers, says Bala.

On the other hand, serious discrimination issues based on ethnicity, gender and religious inclinations need to be addressed and mitigated quickly. The HR team should continuously assess for any workplace dysfunctional signs like hostility, cliques, gossips, mistrust and selfishness in any form.

“Organisational transparency, constant recognition, fair reward programmes, a platform to raise opinions and promoting well-being are all key productivity drivers,” Bala says.

Open all lines of communication, says Smita Shetty Kapoor, CEO and co-founder of KelpHR, a human resource consultancy. “Leaders need to have open door policies. A company that I consult for does something called “breakfast with the leader”. Any employee can block the leader’s calendar, join them for breakfast at the office and have an open conversation about anything on work or interpersonal issues. And this is done one-on-one and no one else from the hierarchy is involved,” she says.

Employees, nowadays, no longer leave jobs only for better pay or in search of brighter opportunities. They leave jobs for their mental health, too, says Sanjiv Singhal, founder of Scripbox, a digital wealth management firm. Toxic office culture is the primary reason for high attrition in companies, and eventually that has serious long-term consequences for the business at large. “Companies should be built on the foundation of trust, respect, and transparency. Each employee should be treated and heard equally. Respectful behaviour is the starting point for a positive work culture,” says Singhal.

Countering toxicity effectively

a) From an organisation perspective, ensure transparency at all levels via town halls and acknowledge mistakes openly to create a culture of trust.

b) As a leader, encourage a more collaborative, empowering approach and not a command-and-control mindset.

c) From a personal point of view, start setting clear boundaries and stop bosses and peers from encroaching that fence; it can be seen how bosses treat one set of people unfairly in office while a select few always get the respect.

d) Building allyship with other leaders in office, sometimes with your manager’s boss.

e) Double down on your strengths so that you get more leeway at work.

f) Document toxic behaviour and approach the HR department with proof.

g) If nothing works, leave the organisation with your head held high and absolutely no regrets.