Ten Signs of a Fear-Based Workplace
Reigns of modest but palpable terror are making an unwelcome return at offices all over the country By Liz Ryan
[I marked this post as both in the Planning stage and the Negotiating stage. I should have marked it as an Interview task as well, for you may find yourself going from the unemployed fry pan to a workplace on fire! Ask questions that help you surface work place culture and style to determine your fit and if you are fit enough to survive a Fear-based Workplace.]
The U.S. financial crisis has caused fear in the boardroom, and that unease trickles down to every worker. The principal signs of a fear-soaked senior leadership are a preoccupation with looking out for No. 1, a clampdown on consensus-building conversations, and the shunning or ousting of anyone so bold or naive as to tell the truth about what he or she believes. We’ve seen the fear epidemic hit dozens of major firms over the past few years, and it isn’t pretty. When a leadership team’s attention turns from “How can we do the right thing for our customers and employees?” to “How can we keep our stature, our jobs, and the status quo intact, at any cost?” then fear officially rules the roost.
Here are 10 signs of a fear-based workplace. If you’re the person in charge of a shop, pay attention:
1. Appearances are everything.
2. Everyone one is talking about who’s rising and who’s falling.
3. Distrust reigns.
4. Numbers rule.
5. And rules number in the thousands.
6. Management considers lateral communication suspect.
7. Information is hoarded. Closely related to the question “Can employees in my company chat freely?” is the question “How do people find out how things work around here?” If the sole answer is, “Ask your manager,”
8. Brown-nosers rule.
9. The Office evokes sad chuckles, rather than laughs.
10. Management leads by fear.
