Most of us have known a high performer who is a bully at work or a leader who delivers results but creates a toxic environment. These “toxic rock stars” can ruin the workplace experience for most employees, but they’re particularly harmful to women of color. These individuals and the cultures that enable them are key factors driving women of color to leave their workplaces.
Leaders, Stop Rewarding Toxic Rock Stars
Research has shown that toxic cultures are extremely costly for companies, and toxic culture was the single biggest predictor of attrition during the first six months of the Great Resignation. “Toxic rock stars,” or bullies who evade consequences because they deliver results, can ruin the workplace experience for most employees, but they’re particularly harmful to women of color. In the midst of the fight for talent, at a time when the link between diversity and better business outcomes is finally being understood and when external stakeholders are demanding accountability on diversity metrics, company leaders must look carefully at the wide-ranging impacts of tolerating and rewarding high-performing bullies at the expense of culture, particularly as they impact women of color.