Yesterday was anti-bullying day and to honor that effort we were
tasked with wearing something pink. I did what I could fashion-wise in wearing a
pink-like dress shirt. More importantly as I reflected on the real
meaning and effort behind the day I considered my own experience of
bullying - both as a child and in the workforce. I suspect in more ways
than one bullying has in a perverse way helped me define my concepts of
right and wrong. In addition, I believe it has helped establish for me
this somewhat quixotic predilection to champion the cause of the
underdog.
But what possible application could this day have to our workplaces or our leadership?
No doubt we are all aware of a multitude
of tragic scenarios that have played out with increasing regularity in
our local communities and across our respective nations - children and
youth subjected to intense and sustained harassment that only gains
attention or action after they have taken their own lives in a desperate
attempt at escape. Invariably as a community, as parents, as human
beings we individually and collectively express shock and dismay that
such a tragedy could take place. Invariably we ask how and why could
this happen, what should have been done to identify and stop the
bullying, and what we should do now. We seem particularly shocked
that children could perpetrate such abuse.
I'm
not sure why we are so surprised. Judging by my own experience and
that of others an undercurrent of bullying exists within our broader
society and in our workplaces. Our youth are unfortunately just
modeling our own "adult" and "professional" behaviors.
I
want to first point out that by starting this entry in the way I
have that I in no way intend to diminish the very real tragedies that
have taken place. I do, however, believe it is useful as a starting
point in highlighting the fact that we unfortunately do not leave that
reality behind once we move on from elementary school. Inadvertently or
not, our leadership styles and our work cultures also tolerate,
sustain, and even foster bullying. Just as there are not, and should
not be, bystanders in dealing with bullying of our youth a similar
sentiment must hold true in our organizations.
There
may be more than a few questions rattling around your head at this
point, not least of which may be "Does bullying really exist in my
organization?" and "What does bullying even look like?" Or perhaps
like me, and others who have reached out to me, you know all too well
the face of bullying from your past or current work. My personal
experiences have run the gamut - leaders abusing their secretaries and
subordinates, physicians intimidating their colleagues/nursing staff/
managers, union presidents running roughshod over their members, peers
targeting peers, and on and on. The list is endless. Perhaps we have
become a little bit less tolerant of such behavior and a bit more
sophisticated in our response than when I first started my career but
such behavior is still far too frequent for my liking.
What
does this have to do with leadership? Everything. First, as leaders
we have to be conscious of our own potential (or reality) for being the
bully. In our roles we yield great power and with great power comes
great responsibility and accountability. By the very nature of our
roles we can intimidate and by using our positional authority - throwing
our weight around - we can cow others into doing what we want them to
do. As leaders we can feel fully justified in doing so - we have been
given the authority, we have earned the leadership role, we have been
given a mandate, my staff don't/can't see the reality like I do, I have a
professional designation (e.g., MBA, MD) that gives me even more
credibility, and so on and so forth. But is this roughshod approach
real leadership? It's not many subordinates who have the courage or
temerity to hold fast in a point of view that is counter to what their
boss is proposing. Even less so if the track record for being contrary
includes personal criticism, opinions being denigrated, being undermined
on other projects or opportunities at a later date (i.e., payback),
being overlooked for promotions or raises, or even being threatened with
- or experiencing - job loss. Even less so if the bullying behavior
has proceeded with impunity before.
If we are not the
bullying leader we have a role in supporting and creating a culture
that doesn't tolerate such behavior. Leaving aside the moral obligation
we have as leaders to prevent and eliminate bullying in the workplace,
there are some very practical and self-serving reasons to deal with
bullies. The implications to individual and organizational performance
are not to be underestimated. Many authors and researchers approach
this subject matter as a workplace health and safety issue. As it
should be. And as with a variety of workplace health and safety issues
the ripple effect of a bully's actions - especially if in a leadership
role - equates to any or all of lower staff productivity and
effectiveness, poor customer service, increased absenteeism, lower
morale, poor team work, higher employee turnover, and very real (and
costly) health issues.
Morally and ethically we are
also called to act as leaders and deal with bullying behavior. Vested
with our own positional and moral authority we are called to stand up
for those who can't stand up for themselves and uphold the stated values
of our organizations or professions. I'm fairly confident that no
organization on record nor any professional association has as one of
its tenets a commitment to fostering a culture of bullying.
All
this being said we could still likely describe recent and ongoing
examples of bullying in our organizations. So what needs to happen to
really make a change? As already noted, I'm not aware of any
organization or professional association that promotes bullying or abuse
or harassment in any form. Quite the contrary. So I don't believe
that we need more written codes of conduct, regulations, policies,
procedures or similar written statements on the matter. What we need is
more courage and action, not more paper. We need to be leaders and
carry through with the obligations we have signed on to. We need
to not dismiss bullying behavior as an aberration or one-time event. We need
to not
condone such behavior because our boss, or peer, or subordinate or
member of our staff "gets results". And our response has to be far more
than providing counseling to those experiencing workplace bullying, or
shifting them to other duties, or giving them paid leave to recover.
Most of these types of actions really do nothing more than blame the
victim - whether that is intended or not.
Harken back
to your days in elementary school. Think about the kids being harassed
and bullied today. The options for response can seem limited. Often a
bully will threaten further - and harsher - retribution if the victim
rats them out. Amazingly enough the victim can experience more
isolation from coming forward - they will appear weak and a whiner in
the eyes of the rest of their peers. If somehow the victim does find
the courage to bring the issue to an authority figure there is no
guarantee that the cycle of abuse will stop.
From
what I've seen in organizations, the behaviors we adopted in school to
get through are the same ones that many use to get through similar
situations at work - silence, tolerance, gritting of our teeth, turn the
other cheek, just trying to make it through another day of work, hoping
that we won't have to encounter that leader, that peer, that
professional who seems to go out of their way to bully and intimidate.
If they do get the courage to stand up to the bully, the processes we
use seem to further draw out the pain and the opportunity for further
abuse and retribution. The bully gets to continue their work, they may
have more "behind closed doors" opportunities to threaten, they have
polished responses that amount to "he said/she said", and they may even
pull out their own claims to now being themselves abused/harassed by
these allegations. The victims often despair of having raised their
voice. Their experience seems to send them a message - don't speak up,
lay low, the cost is too high. And that message is brought home not
only to them but to all staff.
As leaders
we must be the ones
to stand up to the bullies just as we may have once done in school -
head on. There must be zero tolerance for such unprofessional
behaviors. There must be the courage to take
action on the code
of conducts that we have all either helped create or signed on to. Are
such efforts easy or pleasant? Decidedly not! But that is what our
role as leaders entails. And I speak from experience - I have been
threatened by and stood up to so-called leaders, to members of my own
Board of Directors, and to abusive physicians. In too many of those
cases I often stood alone. In many of those cases I too became a
subject of abuse and harassment - late night calls at home, threats of
legal action, public vilification, and in-your-face "discussions". My
role as leader called me to protect those who couldn't protect
themselves, who often just wanted to come to work do a good job and
to have the opportunity to enjoy that work.
Leadership
is hard work and it takes courage. As a leader you set the tone by
your every action (or inaction) each day. Do you have the courage to
stand up and call out the bully that is in your work unit, that is your
professional colleague, that is your peer - that is your boss? Or are
you content to let someone else pay the price for your inaction?
______________________________
Greg Hadubiak, MHSA, FACHE, CEC, PCC
President & CEO, BreakPoint Solutions
gregh@breakpoint.solutions
Helping
leaders realize their strengths and enabling organizations to achieve
their potential through the application of my leadership experience and
coaching skills. I act as a point of leverage for my clients.
I AM their Force Multiplier.
