Co-Presented by: L in Yi Qi Zhegang Yin Hao

WORKPLACE INCIVILITY � 

¡  Definition ¡  Research Background ¡  Forms of Incivility ¡  Costs of Incivility ¡  What’s a Leader to Do ¡  Global Approach ¡  Conclusion

OUTLINE � 

¡ Workplace incivility: defined as a form of organizational deviance… characterized by low-intensity behaviors that violate respectful workplace norms, appearing vague as to intent to harm.”

¡ Incivility is distinct from violence

¡ Examples include: Ø  Insulting comments Ø Not giving credit where due Ø Spreading false rumors Ø Social isolation Ø Bad manners

DEFINITION � 

Motivation of Research: ¡  Rudeness at work is rampant, and it’s on the rise ¡  Consequences have been severe, e.g. low morale of

staff, broken customer relationships, ruined reputation

Methodology of Research: ¡  Interviews, questionnaires, experiments, workshops, etc. ¡  Collected data from14,000+ people in US and Canada

Two Key Findings of Research: ¡  Incivility is expensive ¡  Few organizations recognize or take action to curtail it

RESEARCH BACKGROUND � 

FORMS OF INCIVILITY � 

1)  Show indifference towards co-workers (esp. those who are seeking for help);

2) “Boss from hell” à destroy lower level staff’s confidence and morale at work

3) Isolation 4) Absent-minded during meetings/ presentations � 

¡  Through a poll of 800 managers and employees in 17 industries, we learned how people’s reactions play out. Among workers on the receiving end of incivil ity:

COSTS OF INCIVILITY � 

¡  Many managers would say that incivility is wrong, but not all recognize that it has tangible costs.

Employee feedback that ¡  48% intentionally decreased their work effort. ¡  47% intentionally decreased the time spent at work.

¡  38% intentionally decreased the quality of their work.

¡  80% lost work time worrying about the incident. ¡  63% lost work time avoiding the offender.

¡  66% said that their performance declined.

¡  78% said that their commitment to the organization declined. ¡  12% said that they left their job because of the uncivil treatment.

¡  25% admitted to taking their frustration out on customers � 

COSTS OF INCIVILITY � 

¡  Creativity suffers §  Less Creative and have fewer new ideas if treat rudely

¡  Performance and team spirit deteriorate §  negative consequences, less likely than others to help

¡  Customers turn away §  Criticizing colleagues, disrespectful behavior makes customer uncomfortable §  Regardless of the circumstances, people don’t like to see others treated badly,

¡  Managing incidents is expensive §  one incident can soak up weeks of attention and effort, waste of manpower

COSTS OF INCIVILITY (CONT’D) � 

Leaders set the tone, be aware of your actions

¡  Model good behavior §  Role model, leader is rude §  Create a culture of respect and express your appreciation.

¡  Ask for feedback

§  Leadership style ¡  Pay attention to your progress

§  Self awareness and set good example and alert people when rude.

WHAT’S A LEADER TO DO � 

M A N A G I N G Y O U R S E L F

WHAT’S A LEADER TO DO � 

M A N A G I N G T H E O R G A N I Z Z AT I O N

¡  Hire for civil ity § Avoid bringing incivil ity into the workplace § However, Only 11% of organizations report considering civility at all

during the hiring process.

¡  Teach civil ity §  People can learn civility on the job. Role-playing is one technique §  Video can be a good teaching tool, especially when paired with

coaching. § Highlight the tone, volume and speed of the speech

WHAT’S A LEADER TO DO � 

M A N A G I N G T H E O R G A N I Z Z AT I O N

¡  Create group norms

§  Work in the group to discuss what should and should not do §  E.g. Hospital, smile, greet customer to gain customer satisfaction

¡  Reward good behavior & Penalize bad behavior §  Motivate the staff with incentives, e.g. bonus and TPM §  Warning, punishing action

¡  Conduct post-departure interviews §  Interview with resigned staff to find out Root cause

¡  Take civility global = learn how to read behavior and to react respectfully across cultures

¡  Before you go: Ø  Know who you are Ø  Know where you are going Ø  Be open-minded

GLOBAL APPROACH � 

¡  Once you’re there: Ø  Show respect Ø  Be agreeable Ø  Show patience with others and yourself Ø  Pay sharp attention Ø  Break out of your comfort zone Ø  Be adaptable Ø  Accept and learn from mistakes

GLOBAL APPROACH (CONT’D) � 

A CULTURE OF CIVILITY

¡  Have a cooperative approach

¡  Be aware of underlying needs

¡  Recognize individual differences

¡  Be open to adapting to posit ions

¡  Start from leaders

¡  Clearly define expectations for how

employees treat each other

¡  Reward civi l ized behavior

¡  Encourage stress management

¡  In order to minimize the workplace incivil ity, it requires the

efforts from both leaders and employees

¡ Organizations need to promote the cultures for civil ity

¡ Civility can be enhanced by building competencies in skills

such as listening, conflict resolution, negotiation, dealing

with difficult people, and stress management

CONCLUSION �