In today’s high-pressure business world, demands like meeting sales targets and managing customer relationships are challenging enough. But for some workers, the real battle is surviving the toll of an abusive manager.
Toxic behavior from supervisors — including public ridicule, unfair blame and angry outbursts — can push talented employees to the brink, increasing the likelihood of disengagement and turnover. Just consider the quiet quitting phenomenon of recent years.
As business researchers interested in workplace dynamics, we set out to look into these troubling trends. Our goal was to explore strategies for mitigating the harmful impact of so-called “jerk boss” behaviors, such as insulting employees as “soft” for declining to work weekends.
Drawing from a survey of 237 business-to-business salespeople across multiple industries, our newly published work found two low-cost, high-impact remedies. The first is to encourage productive workplace social media use. The second is to offer flexible work arrangements.
Social media as a support system
In some workplaces, managers view workplace-based apps and larger platforms — like Instagram, LinkedIn and Microsoft Teams — as valuable tools for networking, promotion and coordination. In others, they criticize these spaces for encouraging cyberloafing.
However, an underappreciated quality of social media is its role as a support system for workers facing toxic leadership. Journalist L.V. Anderson once aptly described Slack as “a safe space for mild grousing about management, power dynamics and subtle inequities in the workplace.”
Our research strongly supports this sentiment, highlighting how online platforms enable employees to connect, vent and bypass the formalities of traditional email.
The power of flexible work arrangements
Another key result was that flexible work can go a long way. Personalized work schedules and telecommuting options offer a buffer against the stress caused by abusive supervisors, we found.
It’s easy to understand how this works: Workers feel valued when offered a tailored schedule that meets their needs. This sense of being appreciated helps offset the emotional toll of working under a jerk boss.
So it’s no surprise that more and more workplaces are adopting flexible work setups. An estimated 58% of the American workforce — or 92 million workers — are currently in roles that offer a remote or hybrid setup, according to polling from McKinsey. The same survey found that 87% of people accept offers to work remotely when given the option.
What this means for business
These findings are a call to action for businesses, particularly as disgruntled employees reportedly cost U.S. firms a whopping US$1.9 trillion annually.
Our work suggests that encouraging the use of workplace social media — along with offering flexible work arrangements — can create a more resilient workforce that’s better equipped to handle the challenges of even the harshest of managers. Using both techniques in tandem seems to provide the strongest protection.
To be fair, these interventions don’t directly tackle abusive bosses’ behavior. Addressing that may require more complex solutions, such as targeted training and improved recruitment practices.
But our research suggests that, as part of a larger suite of management reforms, social media and flexible work arrangements can go a long way toward creating more supportive, functional work environments.
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
