Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, I have had the privilege to work with Toxic Managers. Hence, this blog is a take on Corporate Toxicity from experience as well as déjà vu instances encountered while reading the book. And I wish that I had read The Devil Wears Prada rather than reading other books on dynamic and demanding workplaces.
How Toxic Managers Work?
It is easier to create an aura of competence through glorification of trivial achievements rather than investing time and effort on building real competence. There are leaders who read books, then there are managers who read only summaries to be able to quote references. The higher the manager is in hierarchy, higher the chances that their knowledge and competence will remain unchecked behind the safety net of hierarchy. Nobody questions the editor in chief!
And as they often lack competence and acceptance, they hate being questioned or second guessed. They will try their best to avoid being questioned, and they inevitably face questions they will either respond with irrelevant responses or scream belittling phrases – just as Andre experienced through her gruesome year. They are not only aware of their own shortcomings and defend them fiercely but also possess a sense of ego and entitlement that needs worship.
So how do they create this aura? Manipulation! They shift the goal post, frame information differently, change definitions that are hidden in footnotes, and every possible trick in the trade that falls short of being a lie. And the art of manipulation can reach extremes; otherwise, how could investors – who graduated from leading B-Schools with perfect scores – were convinced to invest millions. In theory, I learned about managing management expectations but in practice I have witnessed managers managing the management! Check out this PPT on WeWork.
They ride on the competence of others. Despite lacking competence, they expertise in white labelling work and achievements. They are worse than the free surfers in group projects, as they usually reap only a small share of benefits and do so quietly. Whereas toxic managers will not only steal your show along with credits – while pushing you to the annexure – but also make you feel grateful that they made the show a success while masking your incompetence. And they do so to push their importance, which is the final puzzle piece for creating the aura of competence.
This brings us to the next point; they are excellent task masters. They are such experts that they manage to saddle their work on everyone else, while enjoying an excellent work-life balance with a façade of appearing busy. This is more than a mere tactic, as they use extreme methods that disrupt everyone. They ensure that everyone works on their priorities and KPIs – rather than their own – by creating an environment of unwanted urgency along with unrealistic deadlines, as they need time to add their flavour to effectively white label and claim due credit.
Usually, they are great at blowing things out of proportion, such as the importance of their trivial inputs and opinions, significance of their work and achievement. And without these means they would be unable to build their impression necessary to effectively practice toxicity.
Photo by Floris Van Cauwelaert on Unsplash
Savvy Munshi 