Jerks in the Workplace
The latest McKinsey Quarterly (a journal of strategy and management published by McKinsey & Company) has an excerpt titled Building the Civilized Workplace, from a book by Stanford Professor Robert Sutton.
Jerks and bullies in the workplace are a widespread problem. All too often, those exhibiting the behavior do so because they feel secure in their seniority or fee-earning credentials. (Which is not to say that high-performers are always jerks. Usually, quite the opposite is the case. Not tolerating poor performance, for instance, is not the same as being a jerk.) Research shows that jerks and bullies not only hinder recruiting and retention but also raise levels of client churn and damage reputations.
Firms that harbor jerks may also suffer from reduced levels of creativity and innovation, as well as impaired or dysfunctional cooperation, within and outside the organization. That is no small matter in an increasingly networked world.
The specific jerk-like or bullying behavior types that Sutton identifies are:
1. Personal insults
2. Invading co-worker's personal territory
3. Uninvited physical contact
4. Threats and intimidation, verbal and non-verbal
5. Sarcastic jokes and teasing used as insult delivery systems
6. Withering emails
7. Public shaming or status degradation rituals
9. Rude interruptions
10. Two-faced attacks
11. Dirty looks
12. Treating people who are invisible.
I've blogged about Bob Sutton's work before, with Evidence Based Management, and with Essence of Strategy : Controversial Choices and with Links - My "Top 10" out of 1000 in my Aggregator Today (see bullet no 1.) Obviously, you'll conclude, I'm a "fan." In fact, I'm beginning to conclude that anything he writes is worth reading!
Here are links to his books: