When B.B. King, the King of the Blues, wrote these lyrics, “When my heart starts beating like a hammer, and my eyes get full of tears,”  he wasn’t writing about his job but many hard working Americans feel this way on Sunday evening each week.  According to research, getting ready for Monday can be a real bummer.

Have you ever had that feeling of dread come over you on Sunday evening as your mind begins to prepare for the work week ahead? Does your heart start beating like a hammer? Do your eyes fill with tears? Is the thought of Monday - the start of a new work week - so daunting that you begin worrying about work on Sunday?

This type of worry and dread cuts into your weekend.  It feels like Monday starts on Sunday. This phenomenon has been termed the “Sunday Evening Blues.”

It is a real phenomenon. For some people there is much to worry about. In fact, more heart attacks occur on Monday mornings in the workplace than any other day of the week.  When the sun rises on Monday mornings so does the blood pressure of many hard working Americans.  What is the cause of the Sunday Evening Blues?  The cause could be related to your morning commute, sleep deprivation from the weekend, abuse of alcohol, poor family relationships, or the act of returning to a toxic work environment.

When surveying employees regarding their satisfaction with work, I think it is a good idea to ask this question: “Do you experience the Sunday Evening Blues when thinking about returning to work on Monday?”  The results will be a good indicator of the health of your workplace.

As business leaders we should do what we can to make the workplace a welcoming and inviting place.  The environment should help employees perform at their highest levels.  Below are a few ideas on how to create a warm and inviting workplace and beat down the Sunday Evening Blues:

• Drive Out Fear in the Workplace - Fear stifles creativity, productivity and quality. Fear seizes up the organization’s ability to freely produce results because employees are afraid of being reprimanded.  Drive out fear by ridding your organization of supervisors who are overbearing, micromanaging, nitpicking, fire-breathing Neanderthals.
• Model Servant Leadership - The most productive teams are motivated by servant leaders. When leaders realize their job is to help others succeed, work/life begins to make more sense.  When everything and everyone has to accommodate the leader, he/she is not a servant leader but a dictator.
• Throw Out Rigidity and Embrace Flexibility - Our personal and professional lives have never been more complicated.  Many times the competing demands of our family and work intersect and create enormous pressure.  When the company forces employees to choose between work and family, the company will always lose in the end. Even if the employee chooses company over family, the company will eventually lose when the employee’s family falls apart.  It is best to work things out through flexible leadership.  In other words, focus on results not face time.
• Provide Lessons on Etiquette and Civility - Our country severely lacks some basic lessons on etiquette and civility. If a driver does not speed off at a green light within one second, hoards of cars will start honking their horns, shouting obscenities and shoving crude finger gestures at you.  These ruthless, impatient, vulgar people are driving to work too and you likely work with many of them.  It is a good idea to provide mandatory etiquette and civility training to help smooth out the major and minor irritants that cause friction in the workplace. If there is friction in the workplace it is manifesting itself at the customer level as well.
• Leaders Should Be Nice - It is amazing what will happen in an organization if the top leader and his/her executive team are simply nice people.  You do not have to be mean and nasty to get work done. That is myth not reality.  Leaders who are nice, cordial, pleasant, focused, determined, objective and fair will lead their company to greatness.  When nice starts at the top it will cascade down the organization.

Note: Please take a moment and respond to the poll question on our website regarding this subject.  We are very interested in reader responses.

This past weekend a rough looking middle-aged woman deliberately threw a rather large plastic cup full of soda out of her car window onto a retail store parking lot as we walked by. Realizing the unkempt woman littered on purpose, my wife said to her, “you dropped your cup.”  In a very hateful tone the litterbug shot back, “come over here and pick it up!”  A trash can was simply four or five steps away from the rude woman’s car door but she refused to do the right thing, trashed our environment with her uncleanliness and her unsightly rudeness.

What has happened to basic courtesy? When did it become okay to simply throw your trash out the car window while driving down the highway. When did it become okay to yell, scream and curse at other drivers on the road?  This same lack of courtesy has crept into the workplace as well.

Why do some managers find it acceptable to yell or curse at employees?  Why do some organizations allow fear and intimidation to be used as a management tool? Even non-profit groups, churches and Christian organizations have not been immune to the disease of mean.

One time I observed a blustery executive respond to a subordinate who simply asked a good question, “I am not telling you again because I didn’t stutter the first time,” the impatient executive stated to the employee who was visibly shaken by the rude response.  How creative and innovative do you think that supervisor’s employees were?

A majority of professionals will display trust, dignity and respect among subordinates, peers and leaders.  However, there are those difficult ones who create toxic work environments due to their refusal to treat people nicely.  They litter the workplace with their toxic behavioral trash. Their behavior and demeanor smells and makes people sick.

The Power of Nice is a great book written by advertising executives Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval showing “how to conquer the business world with kindness.”  I highly recommend the brief 119 page book to all my clients, leaders and future leaders. We have all heard the adage “nice guys finish last.” Actually, this is far from the truth.  Sure, mean managers get significant press time.  But according to the authors, “The Power of Nice shows that ‘nice’ companies have lower employee turnover, lower recruitment costs, and higher productivity.  Nice people live longer, are healthier, and make more money.”

The authors Thaler and Koval go on to say, “companies and people with a reputation for cooperation and fair play forge the kind of relationships that lead to bigger and better opportunities, both in business and life.  But nice doesn’t mean acting wimpy. In fact, nice may be the toughest four-letter word you’ll ever experience,” say the authors.

Building great workplaces is not complicated work. Treating employees with dignity, trust and respect is not rocket science. Being nice, respectful and caring is powerful. These qualities are not the tools of a wimpy leader.  These are the qualities of a focused and successful leader who does not need to ruin lives while climbing the corporate ladder or building a successful company.

Will you join The People Group in making a commitment to create a trusting, respectful and caring work environment where you work?  It makes sense.  It’s the right thing to do.  And you will be financially better for it.

On Thursday, October 23, 2008, the Oklahoma Business Ethics Consortium’s Tulsa Chapter held its monthly luncheon with national guest speaker Dr. Gary Namie, director of the Workplace Bullying Institute. Why would an ethics group invite a workplace bullying expert to speak, you might ask?  The answer is simple: How can the same organizations who promote a code of conduct, health and wellness, community involvement, employee volunteerism and corporate giving, also allow workplace bullies - psychological office tyrants - to run rampant inside their organizations while targets of their brutal violent episodes suffer physical and mental repercussions?

Allowing workplace bullying to occur is not right. It is not moral. It is not ethical.

According to Dr. Namie, “Workplace bullying is a health hazard. Cardiovascular diseases are the most common stress-related physical problems for bullied targets.”  He further stated, “Psychological injuries caused by bullying range from debilitating anxiety and panic attacks through clinical depression to post-traumatic stress disorder caused by the bullying.  And it’s all unconscionably legal, though morally reprehensible,” states the passionate Dr. Namie.

Clinical depression is experienced by 39% of targets and post traumatic stress disorder is experienced by 30% of women targets.

Is it ethical for an organization to do nothing?

Doing nothing is not a neutral act, according to the founder of the Workplace Bullying Institute.  In fact, Dr. Namie calls it “cruelty by indifference.”  I agree wholeheartedly.

If your organization allows workplace bullies to conjure up their cancerous potions of fear and psychological violence and tyranny, it is time to take action.  It is wrong to sit silently and do nothing.  Taking no action is not an option for good corporate citizens. It should not take enacting anti-bullying legislation to do the right thing, although that is probably where this country is headed.  Let’s do the right thing today.

The benefits of creating a Great Workplace cannot be more evident than when the economy turns south.  The U.S. and World economies are subject to cyclical movements in both positive and negative directions.  It is a given; there will be periods of growth and expansion, and conversely, there will be periods of restriction and conservation. We know with certainty that each cycle, and the period in-between, is coming.  Companies ride high during times of expansion, growth and spending, and hunker down during the slow, restricted and conservative economic periods.

Unfortunately, the companies who live in a short-term world and do not develop a long-term Great Workplace strategy will eventually succumb to the enemy of average and/or economic conditions.  At best, they are only prepared for economic high times.  The moment trouble comes, however, these ill-prepared organizations eventually close their doors.

On the other hand, companies who have conscientiously developed Great Workplaces where people thrive are prepared for both sides of economic weather conditions.  They ride the waves when they are high, taking advantage of all the good momentum.  And when economic conditions turn bad - and they will - companies with great work environments seem to ride out the storm in a calm and collected fashion; even picking up business from alternative sources, adding new clients, capturing untapped markets, pulling in revenues from varied sources and innovating their way out of an economic disturbance.

Why do companies with Great Workplaces survive economic storms?

The people inside Great Workplaces make the difference because their company truly cares for them by creating a sustainable, flourishing culture.  As a result, a majority of their energized employees are engaged and running on all cylinders.

The benefits of creating a Great Workplace are numerous.  As chairman of the board, CEO, business owner or start-up entrepreneur, the proven benefits of building a Great Workplace will likely make your company a powerful force even in the most difficult of times.  Why? The benefits of creating a Great Workplace have been researched and proven by the Great Place to Work Institute:

• Higher productivity
• Higher profitability
• Better customer satisfaction
• Lower staff turnover rates
• Greater number of applicants for open positions
• Attraction of the best and brightest talent
• Less resistance to change
• Lower health care costs
• Lower workers’ compensation costs
• Lower absenteeism rates
• Lower presenteeism rates
• Higher levels of cooperation
• Higher quality products and services
• Increased innovation and risk taking
• Higher returns to stockholders

When you build a winning team with a great work environment, employees will take care of business during both good and bad times. It is a winning formula for building a long-term, growing and profitable organization.

The Good News

It is never too late to begin the process of building a Great Workplace.  Any company can get there from where they are today as long as the top business leader is the one leading the charge.  It is better to invest your time and resources to develop a Great Workplace and survive an economic storm than to carelessly leave your company culture to chance and file Chapter 11 when the next storm blows in.

During the recruiting process, Mr. Iam Screwed was given an impressive tour of eVille Unlimited’s headquarters, and he was absolutely ecstatic.  A dream job come true, eVille Unlimited had highly recruited Mr. Iam Screwed.

As he toured the extensive headquarters facilities, their professional employees were friendly, helpful and motivated. Plus, the campus included all the latest perks, including a gym, spa, doctor’s office and hair stylist, dry cleaners, restaurants and concierge services, just to name a few.  His potential new boss, Ms. Dee Generate was smart, open, cordial and answered all his questions with utmost patience.  He accepted their generous job offer later that week.

Leaving a very good job, Mr. Iam Screwed showed up two weeks later for his first day at corporate paradise, eVille Unlimited’s headquarters, only to find the workplace in shambles.  The environment was chaotic and cluttered with employees yelling at each other, and many of the elaborate on-site perks closed.  As he approached the receptionist, who now had the appearance of the ghost in The Grudge, a terrible, sickening feeling was oozing all over him.  When Ms. Dee Generate, his new boss, appeared in a red pant suit with a pitchfork and horns protruding from her forehead, he realized he had made the biggest mistake of his life.

Changing jobs should not be so scary.

Seriously, remember what it was like to change jobs and begin learning the behavioral norms of the new company?  Do you recall learning the management style of your new boss?  Adjusting to the new company culture?  Discovering who possessed the real political power?  Were you a little nervous you might uncover something terrible you didn’t discover during the interview process?  Like your new boss was Satan?  Or your new company was a front for Hell?

Thanks to a new career site, GreatPlaceJobs.com, unfortunate first day scenarios like the one above can be avoided because the only companies who are allowed to post jobs on this site are officially recognized great workplaces.

According to Asher Adelman, founder and president of eBossWatch.com and creator of GreatPlaceJobs.com, “Only companies that have been recognized as a great workplace and have received one of the prestigious best employer awards are eligible to list their jobs with GreatPlaceJobs.com.”  To further clarify the quality of the companies on his website, Adelman stated “excellent employers are those that are successful in providing their employees with satisfying careers, a positive and pleasant work environment, and good compensation and benefits packages.”

As one who promotes positive people practices through the many services provided by The People Group, I highly recommend employers who qualify and employees who would like to work for the best companies, visit the site and sign up for their services.  My congratulations to Asher Adelman and his team!  Keep up the great work!

Edward R. Murrow, the famous American broadcaster depicted in the movie Good Night, and Good Luck once said, “The obscure we eventually see, the completely obvious takes longer.”  In your quest to building a successful company, do not assume the creation of a great work environment is complicated.  In fact, the steps are quite simple, if not completely obvious from a people practice perspective.

Company Culture Flows from the Top

In the people practice profession, there is the tendency to over-complicate work culture and how it impacts the bottom line.  The basic principles of a great work environment are quite straightforward, and rest entirely on the leadership’s shoulders.

One of the most important business strategy questions leaders can ask themselves is, “How do I create a great work environment that attracts, motivates and retains the best and brightest talent?”  You might be surprised the answer is not any of these; above market compensation, best in class benefits, top trends in office space design or technological superiority.  The answer is summed up in one, very important, highly-relational, powerful word: trust.

Definition of a Great Workplace

The Great Place to Work Institute, after twenty years of thorough research on the top high-performance companies in America, formulated their definition of a great workplace as a place where employees “trust the people they work for, have pride in what they do, and enjoy the people they work with.”

A leadership team who can be trusted by employees is well on its way from average performance to a great workplace where magic happens.  The good news is employees are not necessarily looking for expensive perks, like coffee bars, gyms, restaurants, game rooms, hair salons and spas, daycare, on-site doctors and nurses, media centers, theaters, dry cleaning, or concierge services.  Although these benefits are very nice options, they do not guarantee a great work environment.

When leaders sincerely care for their people and build an environment of trust, employees will believe in the company mission and develop respect for their co-workers.  Trust is like the secret ingredient found in Coke.  Without it, the recipe will not work.  Many have tried to copy great workplaces without trust and failed.  Without trust, the environment will not click, no matter how grandiose the company’s compensation, benefit and work/life programs.  It is amazing how creating an environment of trust, the missing ingredient in many average performing companies, will hasten the transformation of your company into a great workplace with the potential to outperform your competition many times over.

The Seven Leadership Principles

How does a leader create a great workplace through the simple ingredient of trust?  Robert Levering, founder of the Great Place to Work Institute, who has many years of experience researching successful companies, states there are seven principles leaders must follow to build and maintain trust in their organization:

#1 - Leaders share information. The leaders of great work environments are willing to share information with their entire workforce.  They are not afraid to provide employees of all levels important updates about the company’s status, whether financial, non-financial, positive or negative.  Withholding important company information drives a wedge between employees and leaders, creates misunderstandings, fear and distrust among employees who spend most of their waking hours at your place of business.  Since employees are investing their lives with you, isn’t it likely they deserve to know where the company has been, where it needs to go, how it’s performing and how their efforts make a difference?  Open up the internal information highway and you are well on your way to greatness.

#2 - Leaders are accessible. Leaders in great workplaces do not hide in their execu-caves.  Effective leaders get out of their offices and walk around and mingle with employees.  These same leaders allow employees to voice concerns without fear of reprisals or losing their jobs.  Many of the 100 Best Companies hold regular lunches with employees where leadership shares information, shows sincere concern for employees and listens to their concerns.  More importantly, leaders follow-up on employee concerns and improve the work environment with each interaction.

#3 - Leaders are willing to answer the hard questions. Trust is built when employees see leaders who are not afraid to stand up and field the hard questions.  Employees do not expect leaders to have all the answers, but develop strong trusting relationships with leaders who honestly state they do not have an answer but will respond at a later date.

#4 - Leaders emphasize two-way communication. Leaders who actively listen to employees concerns and engage in two-way communications earn the trust of employees.  Most management teams are good at sending communications or orders down the pipelines, but not necessarily comfortable with receiving feedback from their workforce.  Great workplaces have open, two-way channels of communication.

#5 - Leaders always deliver on their promises. Miss this one and you’re done.  Making a promise and not following through is like going thermal nuclear on your workplace; people get burned.  Employees want to know if leaders will deliver on their promises.  This includes the small things as well as the big things.  Treat your employees like your best customers and you should perform very well in this area.

#6 - Leaders show recognition and appreciation. Deep down employees crave recognition for a job well done.  Receiving recognition and appreciation is one of the biggest unmet needs employees have in today’s society.  Go ahead and make a big deal about employee and team accomplishments.  Brag on your employees in front of other employees  Then sit back and watch a special, positive, energizing, company culture develop in front of your eyes.

#7 - Leaders demonstrate sincere, personal concern. According to the most recent Towers Perrin Global Workforce Study, the number one driver leading to employee engagement is determined by whether senior management is sincerely interested in an employee’s well-being.  You can’t fake sincerity.  It shows in your attitude and other non-verbal clues.  If the leaders are not sincerely concerned for their employees as people, your best talent will likely move to a place where they are better appreciated.

Live by these leadership principles and your organization will soon be inundated with resumes from the best and brightest talent in your industry wanting to work for your organization.

* * * * * * *

This article was originally written for The Business Owner Journal and will appear in the November/December 2008 issue.

Does your company allow bullying to occur in your workplace? If so, does your company also promote themselves as a responsible corporate citizen, espouse social responsibility, healthy living, nutrition and exercise, and charitable giving? If you answered yes to both these questions, welcome to Corporate America’s Hall of Contradictions.

Let’s talk about one of those big, nasty, dirty secrets hanging in the Corporate Hall of Contradictions: workplace bullies and the adverse health affects levied on their targets.  Left alone, workplace bullies cause a rolling tide of unjustified terminations, needless resignations, disrupted careers, tormented families, plus excessive and needless medical expenses on their unsuspecting targets.  With limited support, denials and misunderstandings by coworkers and family members, feelings of embarrassment, suicide is sometimes the  eventual self-prescription for targets looking for escape from these ruthless corporate terrorists. Does this sound like corporate social responsibility?

Workplace Bullying Defined

The Workplace Bullying Institute’s definition of workplace bullying is “repeated, health-harming, mistreatment of one or more persons by one or more perpetrators that takes one or more of the following forms:

• verbal abuse,
• offensive conduct/behaviors (including nonverbal) which are threatening, humiliating, or intimidating,
• work interference - sabotage - which prevents work from getting done.”

Workplace bullying is much more than simple incivility. It goes way beyond rudeness.  The problem is that bullies are quite clever in their attacks.  With limited or no training to deal with ruthless workplace bullies, the executive team rarely comes to the aid of the target.

When Human Resources is Not Humane

Think your human resources department will help?  Think again. Human resource professionals have largely sided with workplace bullies because they lack the fortitude to stand up against tyrants who typically carry political clout inside the organization. Most human resource professionals are more interested in career preservation than upholding a positive and humane corporate culture.  Without a CEO who demands zero tolerance for bullies, the inmates soon take control over the prison, if you know what I mean.

The Health Effects

As a result, the continued abuse leads to health-harming treatment.  According to the 2007 Workplace Bullying Institute - Zogby Survey, 45% of targeted individuals suffer stress-related health problems, which include:

• Hypertension, strokes and heart attacks
• Neurotransmitter disruption, hippocampus shrinkage
• Immunological impairment; more frequent infections of greater severity
• Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Debilitating anxiety, panic disorders
• Clinical depression
• Post-traumatic Stress Disorder from deliberate human-inflicted abuse
• Lost ability to be left alone to do the once-loved job

The Career Affects

According to the WBI-Zogby Survey, the future is not very bright for the targets of bullying.  In most cases, the clever corporate terrorist wins, as depicted below:

• 13% of targets are forced to transfer from their once loved job (a punitive transfer)
• 24% of targets experience constructive discharge without reasonable cause
• 40% of targets quit to reverse decline in health and sanity

Take a Stand

If you have a coworker currently encountering a workplace bully, assemble as many employees and managers as possible to calmly and respectfully fight back.  Faced with numbers, a bully will typically back down because deep down they are weak and frightened.  Silence, fear and a culture where employees do not come to the aid of their coworkers is an environment that allows this corporate terrorism to thrive.

If you have a friend or family member who is currently encountering a workplace bully, listen to them and become their advocate.  Encourage them to seek professional help from a qualified counselor who has dealt with workplace bullying cases. At some point a decision will need to be made whether a job change should be made and the target will likely need your objective opinion and guidance during a tumultuous time.

“All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing.”

– Edmund Burke

If a company’s leadership has intentions from the beginning to operate a fast-growing business in an unethical and illegal manner, while maintaining a positive public image, I have observed one possible sadistic model that can be successful, at least on a short term basis.

The CEO needs to be a well-liked, mild-mannered, suave, polished and articulate business person.  His second in command, on the other hand, should be a domineering, short-tempered, intimidating, executive bully who doesn’t take no for an answer.  It’s his way or the highway and he drives the truck that runs over you. The second in command essentially takes direction from the CEO and barks out orders and creates fear across the organization.

The second in command is seen as someone to be feared and most people will never cross him nor question the direction of the company, even if it is unethical or illegal.  All this while the CEO looks like the good guy and the company is considered an excellent corporate citizen.  It’s the corporate version of good cop, bad cop.  Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in the C-Suite.  This leadership model is confusing to employees on the inside but the public never notices the sadistic practices of the operation.

Welcome to Evil Inc.

According to the 2007 National Business Ethics Survey published by the Ethics Resource Center, the second most observed ethical violation is abusive or intimidating behavior observed by twenty-one percent of employees.  That means one out of every five employees routinely observe the use of abusive or intimidating behavior in the workplace.

Abusive and intimidating behavior is evil, wrong and has no place in the business world. Bullies use the resulting fear to prevent employees from questioning unethical or illegal decisions or methods.  According to the Ethics Resource Center, almost thirteen percent of employees experience retaliation for reporting misconduct.  If you work for Evil Inc. the leaders get what they want and nobody dare stop them. Employees and middle management lack the nerve to question their methods because fear is the weapon of choice at Evil Inc.

Evil Inc., however, is not a long-term going business concern.  Typically the business owners, who are narcissistic and ruthless, run the business long enough to make as much money as possible for themselves before the company folds.  One day everything seems fine to the public then suddenly the company files bankruptcy or closes its doors.  Their voodoo business act is over. The curtain falls on their bipolar management style and operations stop as quickly as they started.  Sadly, the last chapter of Evil Inc.’s story is never a happy ending.

Do you know why patients sue their doctors? Poor bedside manner.  The manner in which doctors behave alongside their patients is the biggest predictor of future malpractice lawsuits.  A physician who treats a patient with respect and courtesy, along with open two-way communication, is unlikely to be sued, even if the doctor makes a mistake in a diagnosis or surgery.  A doctor with a toxic bedside manner who makes a similar mistake, however, should call his attorney and begin working on his defense.

In an effort to find quick, proven ways to predict the probability of malpractice lawsuits, an insurance company discovered a proven method in managing risk; quickly observe how doctors treat their patients. “Patients file lawsuits because they’ve been harmed by shoddy medical care and something else happens to them,” points out Malcolm Gladwell, author of “Blink,” a book on how we make instantaneous decisions without thinking.  These quick and perceptive judgments are quite accurate according Gladwell. The concept, called thin-slicing, is the ability of the unconscious mind to make precise judgments based upon thin slices of experience.

“What comes up again and again in malpractice cases is that patients say they were rushed or ignored or treated poorly,” says Gladwell. “People just don’t sue doctors they like,” states Alice Burkin, a leading medical malpractice lawyer.

This same concept is likely true for employers.  Companies who treat their employees with respect, dignity and fairness, earn the trust of their employees.  Employees typically will not file a lawsuit against an employer who has treated them well.  A company whose leaders have a poor cubicle-side manner, on the other hand, should make sure their liability insurance premium is paid and that they have a good labor attorney.

Toxic work environments create an atmosphere of fear, hatred, mistrust, contempt and brutal office politics. It is only a matter of time when these toxic company cultures begin springing up a crop of wrongful termination claims, sexual harassment charges, constructive discharge lawsuits, race discrimination allegations, unethical executive conduct investigations, insider trading reports by the press, and much, much more.

Pay attention to the signals, good and bad, displayed by your employer’s leadership.  Their cubicle-side manner could be foretelling the future.

CEO’s find the truth hard to handle at times.  Especially regarding employee relations issues, and their resulting effects on morale, quality and productivity.  For example, the CEO may have a hard time believing one of their top performers is a certifiable asshole who is damaging the company’s morale and causing a deterioration of trust in leadership.

The good news is there is a five step program for ridding your company of corporate assholes who have burrowed themselves inside your organization.

Step #1 - Admit assholes are bad for business. Recognize that assholes are bad for the organization. Yes, take that truth syrum and walk over from the dark side to the light.  Believe it or not, there are some CEO’s who think a few assholes scattered throughout the organization actually increase productivity. If this is the case, why not give those assholes some chains and whips to help their cause and instill greater fear.  If fear really works, why not increase the fear for greater effect? Nonsense!  You know it and I know it; assholes must be terminated.

Step #2 - Understand assholes are expert kiss-ups. Understand that assholes are masters at managing up, kissing up and brownnosing, all while causing terror down the corporate ladder.  While you are feeling good about your asshole, he is instilling fear in your organization. As the CEO, the asshole who is your direct report typically makes you feel good when you are around them.  It feels good to have your back end massaged by these clever manipulators.  They are experts at massaging your backside in order to protect theirs.

Step #3 - Adopt, model and promote your company’s code of conduct. I recommend your company also adopt an Anti-Bullying and No-Jerk policy.  Why?  The Workplace Bullying Institute and Zogby research indicate that 37% of American workers have been bullied at work.  That is almost 4 out of 10 employees.  Bullying is four times more prevalent than illegal harassment, yet most companies overlook it.  Because this has become such a prevalent workplace problem, a number of respectable companies have adoped No Jerk Hiring Policies:

“No Jerk Policy” Hall of Fame Companies

Barclays Capital | SPM Communications | Lloyd Gosselink Attorneys at Law

IDEO | Sterling Foundation Management | Gold’s Gym | van Aartrijk Group

Robert W. Baird | The Wine Buyer | Mozilla | Washington Mutual | SuccessFactors

Arup | Goldcorp | Hamilton Canada

Step #4 - Require thorough investigations and no cover-ups. Make sure human resources completely investigates claims of workplace bullying by corporate assholes.  The typical response will be for HR to conspire with or feel pressure from the asshole manager and eventually assist in the firing of the targeted employee or employees.  This allows the evidence to be terminated and walk out the front door.  In other words, assholes like to eliminate their dirty laundry.  Require HR to document the behavior, obtain witness accounts and submit a full written report to the CEO office.  Identify patterns of behavior and provide support to human resources when they recommend bullies and assholes undergo counseling.  Finally, terminate jerks if they don’t straighten up, regardless of their position in the company.

Step #5 - Communicate to stakeholders your company is a Jerk Free Zone. Communicate to employees, applicants and stakeholders your company is a Jerk Free Zone.  Don’t even permit customers to treat your employees terribly.  If you want to create a high-performance team environment, protect your employees.  Sure, develop lofty goals for your team members and create high performance expectations.  Driving out fear in the workplace will almost ensure your organization will be successful. Do this and success will follow you wherever you go.