Should you let people get away with toxic behavior at workplace?

The logical answer is no. However there are some instances when companies let people get away with toxic behavior. For example, when the person displaying bad behavior is a top performer, a senior leader or an older employee who has been in the company for many years. This toxicity can spread quickly within the company and impact the performance and engagement of other employees.?

There are certain techniques that the HR can use to stop the spread of toxic behavior in the organization.??

1. Clear HR policies: To start with, HR should define clear policies on employee behavior (e.g. harassment, discrimination, bullying, physical violence) and the communicate the consequences of breaching them. It is a good practice to create eLearning modules on HR policies that employees can readily access.??

2. Online platform to report bad behavior: HR should encourage employees to report bad behavior. In addition, an online complaint tool (or a whistleblower tool) should be provided where people can report unprofessional and unethical behavior in an anonymous manner.??

3. Provide early feedback: In our experience, companies which conduct annual 360o evaluations for their managers are able to identify toxic behavior and fix it at an early stage. A coach can help in communicating the feedback in an objective manner and with empathy.??

In addition, culture surveys, focus groups and one-to-one conversations with employees can help you identify potential problems and fix them quickly.??

Finally it’s important to take decisive action on any wrongful behavior and thereby set an example for others to learn from.