technology

Technology and Toxic Work Environments

A toxic work environment can bring negativity, drama, decreased productivity, higher turnover rates, higher levels of burnout, and so much more. Naturally, these are the kind of workplaces most companies do their best not to be. And, while you may think your office isn’t toxic, the results of a recent survey may have you rethinking everything.

Dice recently asked technical professionals if they feel that they work in a toxic work environment. It was a simple yes or no survey—which some may say doesn’t leave enough room for nuance, but any workplace toxicity can lead to the negative consequences associated with a toxic office. Ready for the results? Brace yourself.

A whopping 69% of tech professionals who responded said their current office environment is definitely toxic. That means that just 31% believe their office is either without flaws or not toxic despite its few issues. The fact that the majority of technical professionals feel their office environment is so bad it sinks to the level of toxicity should be a major wake-up call for a lot of companies who are trying to build and maintain a roster of talented technical professionals.

Some toxic environments simply need to discourage the daily gossip, inter-office drama, and closed-door policies that have gotten in the way of healthy communication. Others need to scale back on the long, long hours with no relief in sight so their lack of work-life balance doesn’t sink them to toxic levels. A toxic workplace isn’t made by a lack of cultural fit or not enjoying the project you’re working on, it’s brought on by systemic, persistent issues that bring a negative cloud over your workplace on a regular basis.

Technical professionals are eager to flee their toxic work environments so, if you want to attract the right talent to your company and actually keep them there long term, it may be time to evaluate your office for any toxicity so you can squash it before it leads to a problem. If there already is a problem, it’s time to make effective changes that counteract toxicity in the workplace like encouraging open communication, improving work-life balance, getting rid of micromanagers and dead weight, and encouraging managers to listen to tech pros ideas and concerns.

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