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Do you care about your organisation’s performance?
Do you care how that performance is achieved?
Do you care about the people tasked with achieving that performance?
If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions I invite you to read on and let's get right into it!
Toxic leadership is felt. It's not so much what is said or done to employees, but more about how they are systematically left feeling at work. Toxic leadership is characterised by behaviour that causes harm to others, for example controlling, intimidating, coercive, or manipulative.
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The problem with this style of leadership is its ripple effect. It ends up poisoning the atmosphere and energy of a work environment. Those working in such an environment respond by either rejecting it and leaving or accepting it and staying. Those who stay typically cope in one of two ways – they either conform and amplify it or develop immunity to it and become numb.
Toxic leadership is a recipe for disaster and results in some or all of the following:
Low morale and levels of motivation among employees;
High levels of frustration and stress;
Fear and anxiety; and
Lack of commitment.
The end result is lower productivity and poor quality work, which ultimately affects business/corporate performance. No matter which angle it is looked at toxic leadership is not useful or helpful and therefore needs to be addressed.
But by whom and how?
Let’s start with by whom. Those with authority to make policy changes and ability to influence organisational culture must take the lead in addressing toxicity.
How can such an individual or team of individuals do that? Here are 5 preliminary steps:
Step 1
Admit that there is a problem and agree on universal rules for addressing it from the outset:
Transparency:
No shame and blame;
Openness;
Acceptance of what is (instead of denying it's existence); and
Individual responsibility for making positive changes.
Step 2
Engage external coaches or consultants to guide the process, offer new perspectives, facilitate understanding among employees, and maintain focus on the end goal.
Step 3
Provide employees with immunity from persecution for sharing honestly and openly.
Step 4
Everybody must listen to understand and learn from each other.
Step 5
Leaders must be be agreeable to introspection and be ready to change their behaviour.
If you care about your team members, their well being and how they perform why not be the leader who takes that first step?
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