Being the curious soul I am, I started reading through random company reviews on Indeed as a crude, yet effective way to learn more about how people perceive their management and workplace cultures. There were plenty of great comments and experiences noted - and it's good to keep in mind that what we consider a good or bad or toxic workplace can be subjective, based on what we value. For example, if you just want a nice paycheck and great benefits, the workplace culture isn't going to matter much. Or, if you value culture, a nice pay and benefits package will not make you stay in a poor environment. However, there were many comments that mentioned incompetent management, poor workplace cultures, burnout, and poor workplace practices.
Here's a small sampling of reviews I read that reflect general attitudes toward today's workplaces:
"The workplace culture appears to be inclusive... IF... You change yourself (appearance, personality, therapeutic modality, clinical mindset) to how management tells you it is supposed to be, [and] you continue to advance managements reinforcement of clientele's irrational beliefs and flawed perceptions that necessitate their need for this level of care. In other words - clients tell employees what is allowed in the program and management reinforces this behavior."
"This place has high turnover for a reason. Worst place I have ever worked in. Managers are unresponsive and they treat you like you aren't human. Please, if you have any dignity, don't work here."
"I chose this company for it's culture and principles. I felt they valued employees as humans with a work/life balance. Unfortunately, policies have changed over my two years here and I no longer feel valued, treated like a child or someone taking advantage of flexibility, and management needs training on how to be more professional."
Our Opportunity
Most of us have felt the shift in attitudes toward the workplace that have occurred in the last 10 years or so, which have been even more pronounced in the last 3 due to the effects of the pandemic. People are starting to understand the value of their time, feelings, mental and emotional health and traditional workplace models of leadership are not adjusting as fast to accommodate these shifts. Why?
Common in my own experiences and those of the many employee reviews I read through is the lack of alignment between values and behavior. Often, you will find that leaders hold employees accountable to values, policy and behavior expectations they themselves do not follow. Eager applicants are lured into organizations under promise of being treated well and having opportunity, only to find that the opposite is true. This creates immediate disengagement, influences "quiet quitting" and is counterproductive to stated goals and values. In fact, often you'll find that people who do live the values are ridiculed, ostracized and pushed out of organizations, for fear they may shine light on what's really happening- just by being there.
The opportunity then is for training to focus on alignment between the stated goals and behaviors and the actual behaviors. What are some simple, yet effective ways organizations can start doing this?
3 Ways to Upscale Your Leadership Training for Cultural Alignment
Teach leaders how to manage differences: While diversity and inclusion have been at the forefront of many organizational initiatives recently, not much has changed. Why? Traditional views on what's right, wrong, acceptable, or unacceptable are still in place- which naturally create hierarchy, division, and discrimination against anyone on the "wrong" side of these views. To create real inclusion, leaders (and employees) will need to know how to expand their beliefs about right and wrong and how to hold space for others who think, look, or act differently. Different does not equal wrong, and this sentiment should be included in all training and team development.
Drive home the importance of aligning to corporate values- and the consequences for not doing so. Dismantle "good ol' boy" style networks that protect incompetent leadership- these only serve to alienate employees, stifle creativity, and create toxic environments for those employees who are trying to do things authentically and ethically. Not doing so creates an environment for mediocre performance and effort (the "I'll just do what I'm told" group)- which doesn't align with the creative, safe, and open cultures many organizations state they want. Accountability measures must be built-in and upheld regardless of who the offender is. Not doing so automatically removes trust from the equation. Trust is earned- and this applies in both directions.
Balance the focus between influence and control of others to include effective control of oneself: Traditional leadership training focuses too much on the influence and control of others and doesn't emphasize enough that being an effective leader is an inside job. Teach leaders the skills and benefits on self-reflection and emotional management- doing so will automatically increase their effectiveness. Building character allows leaders to live the values on the boardroom wall, which will naturally build trust with employees.
Hi! I'm Nicole, an organizational consultant and personal coach, who is passionate about inspiring the changes our society needs for all to thrive. Using lessons learned from my own experiences and challenges, I hope to help people within organizations by creating mentally, socially, and emotionally healthy workplaces for all. Check out the other resources on this site for more ways to do just that!
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