Change is an ever-present force within all aspects of society- our families, social circles, and especially within organizations. The ability to manage change in healthy and effective ways is a skill that will serve you well, no matter your industry or level within your company.
How many of you have seen the "needs to be comfortable with ambiguity" requirement in a job description? I'm sure most of us have, and you've probable also worked in an environment where ambiguity became the norm, rather than the exception. In some cases, this makes sense, right? Our world is very volatile right now, with certainty of anything not being guaranteed. When ambiguity becomes the norm though, it's worth it to further analyze why that is- and not always assume it's due to circumstances out of anyone's control.
In some organizations, ambiguity and confusion can be used as tools to marginalize, gaslight and restrict performance and movement of anyone that doesn't conform to the status-quo, or anyone who isn't a "culture fit". These tactics are used to create a hostile work environment for someone, in hopes that the confusion and lack of support will push them to leave their position. This is a deeper layer of inclusion work that should be explored- so let's do that now. What does it look like to use ambiguity as a form of discrimination?
Ambiguity & Discrimination
I'll use one of the many examples from my work experience to help illustrate this phenomenon:
I had a manager who in the beginning (of course) was very supportive and excited to have me onboard. Being a go-getter, I started by identifying areas that the experience and expertise I brought into the role could help to address. It didn't take long for me to notice my manager had become intimidated by me- aside from the passive-aggressive and hot/cold behaviors, I began to notice she gave extremely vague and directionless assignments. When I would ask for clarifications, she would speak in circles, say that "things are just not certain right now, but just do something" without specifying the outcome she was looking for.
When I asked for clarifications on her expectations of me in general (in an effort to meet her wherever she was at), I was met with "I don't know" or more talking in circles and vague responses. When in groups in front of others, she would then attempt to paint a picture that what needed to be done was clear-cut and certain (as if I was incompetent and unable to just figure out what she was saying) and when I would pull her aside and seek further clarification, she would backtrack on what she had said in front of everyone else, and I'd leave the conversations with nothing more than what I came in with.
I was proactive in talking with her multiple times in 1:1 meetings, pointing out discrepancies (without being outright accusatory, although it was warranted) and asking for clarifications in writing. My role was never really established in the team, and of course, each time I asked for clarification on what that was, and what future she saw, she would waffle and continue the word salad. This manager was particularly conflict-avoidant and insecure, so instead of saying how she really felt (instant lawsuit, lol) she used these tactics to create ambiguity in my role and in my work in an effort to make me give up and leave the company.
Combing through LinkedIn and via conversations I've had, I've come to learn that this is a common occurrence, most commonly with women of color and the neurodiverse community (I am part of both groups). Feigned ignorance and ambiguity are commonly used to distract, manipulate, intimidate, and discourage targets in an effort to paint them as unfit for their roles. Organizations will do this in order to say they have "tried" diversity hiring- but somehow, it never works out.
As long as organizations can show they have hired in a diverse way, they are legally safe. There are no consequences if organizations do not actually include, grow, and nurture diverse people, and it shows. This Forbes article shared that the most common reason why tech employees leave their organization is due to unfairness and mistreatment in the organization. Among underrepresented groups, 40% of men of color and 36% of women of color cited unfairness as the reason why they left an organization. My gut tells me that these numbers are probably higher than reported, especially for other industries, but even these numbers should be sounding alarms for leaders and HR professionals.
It's not enough just to bring diverse people into hostile environments. It is not okay to use tactics, like creating unnecessary ambiguity to project insecurities and fears onto unsuspecting diverse employees. Organizations need to be called out and held accountable for these and other discriminatory behaviors.
What To Do
This issue will need to be addressed much in the same ways as other discriminatory practices in organizations - candid conversations and accountability will need to be present in order to effectively identify managers and employees who participate in these behaviors. The social structures and status-quo in place makes this tough- and puts anyone attempting to do this in the line of fire. True revolution is not for the faint of heart! For lasting change to begin:
Employees and leaders will need radical levels of courage to call out these behaviors publicly to provide immediate consequences. Consequences influence behavior, and without them any initiative will fall flat.
Behavior expectations will need to be set, modeled and enforced within the company. Dismantling "good ol' boy" groups and cliques that are known for getting away with behaviors is required. This is why executive accountability and support is necessary- and why when executives behave badly, it trickles throughout the whole company.
Prioritize leadership training beyond the basics. Organizations have an abundance of people who can manage processes well but lack crucial skills in managing people. The importance of soft skills should be reinforced, and these skills should determine leadership capabilities and potential for all leaders.
Victims: Be outspoken about your experiences. The more people who come forward about their experiences, the more pressure you can place on management to do something about it. Staying silent unfortunately enables this behavior. If there is no one within the organization to trust (often the case) seek help and support with friends, family, support groups, or the EEOC if necessary to file a complaint.
We all play a role in the current state of our organizations, willingly or unwillingly. Here are a few self-reflection questions to consider after reading this article:
What keeps organizations stuck in your opinion?
Are the above solutions reasonable? Why or why not?
Have you ever intentionally made someone's job ambiguous? What made you behave in those ways? Were you rewarded?
If you noticed someone being treated negatively, would you speak up?
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!
Comments