Have you ever stopped and thought whether your business had adopted a toxic work culture? I don’t mean to put doubt in your mind, but it’s the sort of thing that can creep up without warning. All it takes is one bad influence to cause an entire team to lose focus and shift their mentality. Before long, that toxic work culture might just put your business in severe jeopardy.
Never fear! We’re already well prepared for this, and we’ve got a four-step fix solution for your business. Here’s what you should think about doing.
Step 1: Acknowledge It
You’ve already put yourself on the path to acknowledgment by clicking on this article. But, you might not be all that sure whether your business is suffering from a toxic environment. Here are some signs that you really need to look out for.
- If the managers and leaders in your business are leading the pack, they need to set an example. When they’re behaving the worst of all, it’s a clear sign that something needs to change quickly. The same could be said for managers that let toxic behavior slip past their radar and go undetected.
- If you notice a pattern of negativity surrounding multiple employees, it’s a big warning sign. Negativity spreads like a bad disease, convincing other staff members to jump on board. If you notice this, you’ve got a problem.
Those are just two signs, but be aware that the signs of a toxic culture go far beyond them.
Step 2: Analyze It
Now, you need to analyze the culture and work on fixing it. This is where it can sometimes be beneficial to bring in outside help. A toxic culture isn’t easily fixable, especially if you don’t have any experience in this area. First, you’ll want to identify areas of the business that are ‘infected.’ Then, analyze a potential fix or look to motivational tactics or contact center consultancy to help turn the situation around. From here, you can develop a plan to fix the issue at hand.
Step 3: Action It
It’s time to put this plan into place! The idea of putting a stop to a toxic work culture needs to be highly thought about ahead of time. Unless you do this, it’s easy to make employees feel even more disillusioned with the company. By adopting a positive and tactical mindset going into this step, you’ll have the best chance of success.
Step 4: Recognize The Cause
It’s important to never lose sight of the cause behind this toxic culture. Why did it start? What did your business do wrong? Here are some examples of common reasons why toxic cultures are bred in business.
- In many cases, it can form as a result of inconsistency on your part. When your policies are ever changing, it can make employees feel disillusioned. Eventually, they’ll start taking you less seriously.
- Favoritism is another area you need to be careful of. Even if you think you’re being fair, employees don’t always see it the same way.
We hope you enjoyed our four-step fix to a toxic work culture!
This article was provided by ellie jo