CrapGrass In Your Company

Gardeners are constantly faced with challenges: plants that won’t bloom, flowers that die from a late frost and droughts that wipe out entire beds. As a result, they are keen on finding varieties that can tolerate flooding, drought, even fire; those that can’t be killed. These ensure that a gardener will yield a healthy crop that is pleasing to the eye, even when other plants die off. 

The problem with many hardy plants like ivy, Coral Ardisia and others is that - as they multiply - they grow in density and prohibit sunlight from reaching the ground, killing off otherwise healthy native groundcovers such as violets and trilliums. Similar to hardy plants, office bullies (IE: mean girls, brown nosers, misogynist boys clubs and other varieties of trouble makers) may be winning your favor at the expense of positive, solid contributors. 

A study published in the Journal of Managerial Psychology found that workplace bullies regularly receive positive evaluations from supervisors and achieve high levels of career success. Researchers concluded that their social ability and political savvy enable them to exercise abuse - strategically - while being well liked among those in higher ranks.

Understanding the Direction of your Garden  - Beverly Younger, associate professor at the University of Southern California’s School of Social Work says that workplace bullying can have devastating consequences on both individuals and businesses. "Targets of bullying often feel anxious, stressed, they have lower self-esteem, less self-efficacy, and they may consider leaving their position," she said.

During exit interviews - almost everyone who quits say that it is because ‘so and so’ created an impossible work situation, but she continues to get promoted and those of us that still work here continue to suffer. For those suffering under the abuse of a bully, it's important to understand, communicate and apply your professional value proposition.

Knowing Yourself as a Cultivator

If you are a boss and really want to understand your appetite for bullies, you should ask yourself if any or all of the following are true:

1. You hate complainers. Workplace complainers are in your face, asking you to make a judgment call when it’s one person’s word against another. They are incapable or unwilling to resolve conflict on their own. “We’re adults,” you think, “Can’t we all just get along?” Bullies, on the other hand, don’t inconvenience you at all. They mistreat others behind-the-scenes and their social and political savvy allows them to remain calm, cool and most importantly – surprised when you confront them about the claims against them
2. You hate weakness. The only thing you hate more than tattlers is weaklings. In your mind bullies are a kid problem – limited to the school yard - not something that grown adults should be whining about. Surprisingly, it’s not just kids or ‘weak’ adults that get bullied. When strong and valuable contributors – who can easily find jobs elsewhere - are constantly questioned, hassled and undermined by someone with inflated power in an organization, they will often move on to a new career opportunity where they are respected and trusted to do the job that they were hired to do.
3. You love loyalists. Like hardy plants, bullies are dependable when all others abandon you. They are crafty and know that each time they push out an ‘incompetent complainer’ they are further carving out a spot out for themselves within the ranks of the indispensable… and they are right. They stand tall, by your side, through organizational ups and downs and don’t generally demand a lot in return. Because of this you eagerly reward them with promotions and raises. Maybe you’ve heard them speak disrespectfully to co-workers a time or two, but you talk yourself into believing that the object of their verbal slap-down deserved it and they are acting on your best behalf, or it is merely and isolated event. “They carry so much of the weight around here; they are probably just having a bad day.”
4. You value your bully more than others in your organization. You are aware of the mistreatment of your employees, after all multiple complaints have been made against the bully, but the bottom line truly is the bottom line; the office bully contributes more to the organization than the victims of their abuse. While this may only be true because you give them more power and support, they are delivering results so - from your standpoint - there is no need to upset the proverbial apple cart.

The Long-term Viability of your Crop  - Just like gardeners who choose hardy plants that will ensure a healthy crop when faced with inclement weather, bosses sometimes make eyes-wide-open decisions to keep office bullies instead of the victims of their abuse. After all, the bully has probably proven that they are best positioned to ensure the viability of the organization, at least in the short term.

Long term, there are can be problems that you should consider. For one, the cost of hiring, training and firing employees usually exceeds the value that a bully can deliver to the organization. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reports that it costs upwards of twice an employee’s salary to find and train a replacement.

Additionally, like to Coral Ardisia - whhich has a germination rate of 84% to 98% and is almost impossible to control, bullies care most about advancement, not you. They are merely manipulating you to get ahead. If they have the opportunity to become bigger than you, they will. And then you, rather unfortunately, may become the object of their bullying. 

Like out-of-control foliage, there won’t be much you can do to stop them because it is you that advocated for them all along.

Now may be the right time to ask yourself how your garden grows. As a leader and the “master gardener” of your organization, it is your responsibility to protect its intended design and identify the problems that, if left untended, will lead you up-to-your-knees in a pile of weeds.