Many social issues become inherently politicized and bleed into relational dynamics at work.
The tension between expectations of free speech versus feeling safe is escalating.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings often strengthen awareness but can be limited in bridge building.
According to recent Harvard Business Review publication What Resilience Means, and Why It Matters, 75% of workplace leaders said that the biggest drain on their resilience reserves was “managing difficult people or office politics at work.”
In 2015-2019 the cost of turnover due to workplace culture exceeded $223 billion.
1 in 5 Americans are uncomfortable engaging in such conversations with their manager, suggesting many People Managers fail to foster an environment of trust and comfort.
70% of adults in the U.S. have experienced some type of traumatic event at least once in their lives. That’s 223.4 million people.
Sources: SHRM July 2019 Omnibus, SHRM/Kronos survey, and the U.S. Census Bureau & https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/
Challenges of divisive polarization in workplace culture include:
Furthermore, indicators of reactive culture can manifest in challenges such as departments struggling to work well together, cultural tensions impacting the brand, feedback from staff/clients sharing that leadership is not doing enough to address DEI issues, and an overall struggle with engagement, retention, and performance.