Perhaps, the exodus caused by the global pandemic has triggered tectonic shifts in work culture. Somehow, companies chose to ignore employee resentment in favor of customer satisfaction, leading to a major upsurge. However, the pandemic has prompted workers to reconsider their current status, long-term goals, work-life balance and working conditions.
Employees complain about a lot of things, but what elements of the culture are so awful that they're considered toxic? How can we tell a culture so horrible that it is considered toxic from a culture that is just plain irritating? Identifying the elements that make a culture toxic is the first step to improving it. Leaders will waste their effort and attention trying to improve any aspects of company culture that some employees find irritating. To understand what makes a culture toxic, there is need to look at the language employees use to describe their organization.
When employees join a company, they expect a culture that is inclusive, respectful, ethical, collaborative, and free from abuse by those in power. When the corporate culture fails to deliver on these core commitments, it's understandable that employees react with something stronger than anger or disappointment. In addition to the pain inflicted on employees, a toxic culture also results in costs that directly impact the bottom line of the organization.
Companies with a toxic culture will not only lose employees, but they will also struggle to replace employees who jump ship. Concrete steps leaders can take to detoxify their organizational culture are fostering open communication if you want to retain your employees. Companies need to develop specialized retention programs. If you only measure people by results, they will do anything to avoid negative results. A pleasant work environment can have a direct impact on how well employees fit in and how you can recruit new employees. A positive work culture is a great competitive advantage. With the right culture, your business can go anywhere. Therefore, measuring culture at the corporate level is a great way to identify factors that matter to many employees, such as: perks, benefits, and job security.
This book intended to reshape company ways of doing things for growth and development of employees and company. Believe it or not, your company has a culture. It's up to you to shape this culture in a way that not only benefits your team members, but also the growth and development of your company as a whole.
