Some aspects of your work culture are going to be obvious – if an observer sat in a hallway for a day, would they overhear people yelling and screaming at each other, losing their temper constantly? Would they catch people thanking each other, encouraging and praising each other’s good work?  These things would make a statement about your work culture – but more subtle actions and words also shape a culture. How “in tune” are you with your organization’s work culture? How confident are you that everyone treats each other – and customers – with trust and respect in every interaction? Does how people treat each other in your organization tend to show you have developed great practices, or does it indicate there are deep problems?

Often, we see reports in the news about toxic culture in major organizations that are unfortunate to hear – but not surprising. Those who have worked in such environments describe a culture of fear and intimidation, of extreme verbal abuse, of belittling, embarrassing, bullying, and humiliating interactions regularly.

The problem is that such treatment – fear, intimidation, verbal abuse, belittling, and humiliation – are all too common in our workplaces today. The Workplace Bullying Institute’s 2021 survey found that 66% of Americans are aware of abusive conduct in the workplace – and 65% of bullies are bosses.