3 Signs of Unhealthy Company Culture
- Bea
- Mar 30, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 2, 2022
Every business experiences cultural shifts. We’ve all known the excitement of high times when there’s a big push towards a goal and everyone is working together to make it happen. There’s something thrilling about being in the trenches with your peers with a focus on something that feels important.
We also know those times when things feel off. The vibe is uncomfortable or maybe even hostile. People keep to themselves or break into factions. When it really gets bad, people start quitting. The most dangerous time for a leader though is when things aren’t going well with company culture and you don’t know it.
Here are three signs to look out for to know if unhealthy company culture is an issue you’re facing:
Employee Cliques
In every workplace, there are people who form close relationships. This is a healthy part of company culture. Sometimes though employee cliques form. These can be toxic in a workplace. An employee clique is noticeable by the way they make others feel. Conversations stop when you walk into the room. They lunch or have gatherings and you aren’t invited.
Why is this happening?
Because they don’t trust, respect, or believe in you. While you might want to blame your employees for this negative shift in company culture, they’re just engaging in a social survival mechanism. The cause of employee cliques is leadership.
A positive shift in your leadership style will lead to a positive shift in company culture.
Increased Employee Absences
This one is so obvious you might miss it. Similar to employee cliques, absenteeism is often a survival mechanism for people. When work is so miserable that you can’t bear to go in, that’s a leadership issue.
When you see an increase in absenteeism, it’s time to do a culture audit. Start analyzing potential sources of stress for your team such as:
Working more than 40 hours a week
More work than they can reasonably complete in their scheduled hours
Customers or clients behaving disrespectfully
Team members who are poorly trained and not ready to pull their weight
Leadership favoritism towards certain team members
Racism, ableism, misogyny, fatphobia, homophobia in the company culture
These types of situations can make a workplace intolerable. Employee stress can become so intense that they begin experiencing physical symptoms of anxiety, leading to increased absenteeism. When you notice employees suddenly out of work a lot more than they used to be, it’s time to take an honest look at yourself as a leader and engage in a culture audit.
Nobody is Telling You the Truth
This one requires you as a leader to really be paying attention. If you’re rolling through your days with no worries, just doing what you want and assuming it’s fine because nobody is telling you it’s not, you might want to pause. Leaders who don’t regularly get negative feedback from their teams are likely not connected to their people.
In a healthy workplace culture, people feel comfortable telling the boss what they think. You want employees who will tell you when your idea is whack. You want them to tell you when you’re overstepping boundaries and involving yourself in a project or decision you can trust them to lead. You want them to name that you’re not involved enough and they need you checking in more.
This type of feedback is a sign of healthy company culture. When it’s not happening, it’s a sign of trouble. It means your people either don’t trust you or don’t think you’ll bother to change your behavior. That’s when people check out and just put in minimal effort to get their pay or quit altogether.
As a leader, it’s your responsibility to have a pulse on company culture. Telling yourself everything is fine and ignoring the ground truth will lead to low morale and high turnover. You’re here because you care about your people and your business. We’re here to help you analyze company culture and set it right.
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