Toxic corporate cultures

A #toxiccorporateculture is one in which fear and intimidation are used to control employees and where there is a lack of trust and respect. This type of environment can lead to low morale and productivity, as well as an overall negative work experience for employees.

Just like any other relationship construct, corporations need to be mindful of the basics and what manifesto they have set for themselves, their leadership teams and their employees.

Afterall, business is a facet of culture, while management styles can vary and there is no one rule that fits all, yet the fundamentals of culture remain pretty much the same.

Culture is not built overnight; it is rather a long process of continuous formation of many variables and values put to practice on a daily basis.

We have seen examples and read many articles about leadership and leadership from the front, when the leader sets the example, the rest will tend to follow.

Business leaders can reverse toxic corporate cultures by creating an environment of trust, respect, and team collaboration. Leaders should set clear expectations and provide consistent feedback and recognition to employees. Additionally, they should promote communication, transparency, and accountability.

You walk down the corridors of some organizations and most often in toxic corporate cultures two clear indicators jump to the surface, gossip and complain.

Just like any couple when they regulary visit a marriage counselor, it is always recommended that corporations invite a third party expert consultants to carry out a corporate culture health check. This does not have to be done as a one off but rather set clear guidelines and indicators to measure on a regular basis.

Some of the most visible symptoms of toxic corporate cultures are as follows: 1.) Absence of core values, 2.) Gossip, 3.) Unhealthy employee competition, 4.) Employees are often tardy or absent, 5.) Employees often work late or don’t take proper breaks, 6.) Still hiring for culture fit, 7.) lack of workplace initiatives, 8.) absence of the promote from within and above all and certainly there is no DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) policy and proper #corporategovernance in place. This list can go on and I just wanted to merely provide a concrete proof of some of the very visible indicators that toxic cultures harbor.

On the other hand, building a healthy corporate culture is not the responsibility of one executive in the organization, it is the collective effort that the leadership teams embrace all together. It is exactly like how a basketball team, or a football team would behave. There is much that corporations can learn from each other but also from other sectors and even sports itself. If one observes sports teams, they have a clear captain but what they also have is the core team in place like the C-Suite and they also have a coach. Many organizations today still doubt or contemplate the idea of having a business coach on board and question its value while some others have started to adopt this kind of thinking that their leaders should not be left alone and require business coaching.

In net, the cost of having toxic corporate cultures can be detrimental to all stakeholders and catches up like fire in the demise of corporations. The good news, all can be reversed once corporates are made aware of the negative impact and do understand the benefits of having healthy corporate cultures.

About the Author:?#PaulBoulos is a well-seasoned business growth professional. He is a corporate governance expert, executive business coach and master educator/trainer with high entrepreneurial drive. He founded Antworks Consulting with the purpose of partnering with clients to help them be the best version of themselves and deliver sustainable business growth & impact. Paul is a curious student of life with continuous learning to remain at the forefront of business excellence.

Prior to establishing his own firm, He accumulated over 20+ years of rich & in-depth business growth experience working in fast-paced, blue-chip global & regional corporations such as Ogilvy & Mather, Leo Burnett; Dentsu, Henry Ford Health System among others.?He has a B.A Liberal Arts | M.A International Affairs | Diploma Strategic Media Management | Diploma Executive Business Coaching | Diploma Corporate Governance.

Email:?[email protected]