Toxic cultures are making headlines again

The stuff we thought we’d confined to Room 101 for good is still there, lurking just below the surface in our organisations and institutions. Bullying, coverups, ego-driven bulls in china shops of leaders, it’s all there in varying degrees.

It needs to stop and it needs to stop now.

Major mental and physical impacts of working in a toxic culture aside, organisations who tolerate this are in the last chance saloon. Gen Z simply won’t hack it, they just won’t come and work for you. If they do they just won’t stay. This s**t just got (even more) real.

What makes a culture toxic? If you’re in the middle of a public (or even private) toxic fallout then how do you handle it? And most importantly, what should you be doing to try and mitigate a culture of toxicity in the first place?

Our monthly Hive panel of industry leaders and commentators have been discussing this issue and we’d love to share what we discussed with you. Someone who’s already watched it urged others to have a watch, calling it

a really valuable lunch and learn.

Due to the overwhelmingly positive reaction to the discussion, we’re now turning it into a thought paper along with advice on how to mitigate against a toxic culture at your place. Any thoughts you’d like to share on the subject, email Charlotte or hit us up on twitter

Toxic Cultures Part 1 – with Jo Moffatt, Charlotte Dahl, Cathy Brown and Lorna Leeson

Toxic Cultures Part 2 – with Jo Moffatt, Lorna Leeson, Jo Dodds and Cathy Brown

As a taster, here’s Charlotte on when toxic cultures arise

and Cathy Brown on what’s missing in a toxic culture.