THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Construct Measuring the impact of toxic leadership on the subordinates.

Independent variable Toxic leaders

Dependent variable - Subordinates

 Contents

1. Introduction of toxic leadership.

2. Characteristics of toxic leadership.
3. Process of toxic leadership.
4. Rise of toxic leadership and toxic workplaces-psychology today.
5. Consequences of toxic leadership.
6. Causes of toxic leadership.
7. Examples of toxic leaders.
8. How successful leaders handle toxic people?
9. Toxic leadership- how to prevent it?
10. Our learning.
11. Conclusion.
12. References
13. Snap Shots
 Introduction of toxic leadership

Toxic leadership is a combination of self-centered attitudes, motivations, and

behaviours that have adverse effects on subordinates, the organization, and mission
performance. This leader lacks concern for others and the climate of the organization,
which leads to short- and long-term negative effects.

A toxic leader is a person who has responsibility over a group of people or an

organization, and who abuses the leaderfollower relationship by leaving the group or
organization in a worse-off condition than when they first found them.
 Characteristics of toxic leadership

1. Autocratic

The leader makes the most out of their position and authority to make things happen.
They impose their will without stopping to consider the ideas and opinions that come
from their team. They are focussed on maintaining tight control and are intolerant of
mistakes falsely assuming that the same mistake would not happen to them.

2. Narcissistic

Narcissistic leaders have an exaggerated sense of their own importance. They believe
that they are special in some way. They have an excessive need for admiration from
other people and lack empathy when dealing with others.

These leaders are arrogant and self-serving. They are more interested in personal
success and gain than in the long-term growth of the organisation and the
development of its people.

3. Manipulative

The manipulative leader is similar to the narcissist as their focus is still on themselves.
These individuals will abuse their position, relationships and organisational systems
for their own gain.

Theyre harder to spot than the narcissistic leaders as they are often sneaky and hide
their activities.

4. Intimidating

The intimidating leader will bully their subordinates and those around them to achieve
their aim. They are manipulative and have a tendency towards ruling with an iron
fist.
Their team hate them and will actively avoid talking to them unless they are forced to
spend time with them. Their subordinates will not offer ideas or challenge them for
fear of disapproval or ridicule.

5. Overly Competitive

The overly competitive leader has a win at all costs attitude often leaving a trail of
damaged and broken individuals who have failed to keep up with their pace. They
have a win at all costs attitude that means that they are quick to make decisions and
rarely have time for subordinate input.

They think that they have high standards and are inspiring.

6. Discriminatory

The last toxic characteristic is that of the discriminatory leader. They do not value
diversity and surround themselves with people of a similar ilk. These leaders do not
want to be challenged by people with different points of view so they surround
themselves with yes men who will tell them what they want to hear.
 Process of the consultant of toxicity elimination

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Rise of toxic leadership and toxic workplaces-psychology today

The truth of the matter is that we are hypocrites, and we are witnessing the rise of
toxic leaders and workplaces. We tend to choose or follow a very different kind of
leader. We hire and promote the psychopaths, the narcissists, the bullies and the
autocrats dedicated to self-interest, and whose long-term impact has and can damage
and even destroy organizations (and even countries)

Jean Lipman-Blumen, in her book, The Allure of Toxic Leaders, describes how toxic
leaders create serious and enduring harm on their followers, employees and their
organizations. Recent polls of the American public shows some of the lowest trust
results in decades for elected members of Congress and business leaders. She
identifies toxic leaders behaviours as follows:

Leaving their followers worse off than when they found them by deliberately
undermining, demeaning, seducing, marginalizing, intimidating, demoralizing,
terrorizing them;
 Consciously feeding their followers illusions that enhance the leaders power and
impair the followers capacity to act independently

Playing to the basest fears and needs of the followers;

Threatening or punishing those who fail to comply with the leader or question the
leaders actions;

Misleading followers through deliberate lies;

Blaming others for their mistakes or failures.

Toxic workplaces can be characterized as follows:

All sticks and no carrots. Management focuses solely on what employees are
doing wrong or correcting problems, and rarely give positive feedback for what is
going right. Or mostly carrots for the best performers, sticks for the the rest;

The creeping bureaucracy. There are too many levels of approval and
management to get things done and a singular focus on micromanaging
employees;

The gigantic bottom line. A singular focus on profits, beating the competition and
cost cutting without consideration of other bottom lines;

Bullies rule the roost. Bullying of employees by management, or tolerated by

management when it occurs among employees;

Losing the human touch. People are considered to be objects or expenses rather
than assets, and there is little concern for their happiness and/or well-being;

High levels of stress, turnover, absenteeism and burnout;

Instituting internal competition among employees enforced by a performance

assessment system that focuses on individual performance rather than team
performance;
 Little or no concern for work-life balance, where a personal or family life must be
sacrificed for the job;

Overwork or workaholism, commonly evidenced by 50 hr+ workweeks, little or

no vacation time and 24/7 availability for work communication;

Little evidence of leaders compassion and empathy for employees;

Little or no commitment to making contributions to the community, worthy

causes or making the world a better place.
 Consequences of toxic leadership

It creates an unpleasant work environment- Toxic leaders micromanage

transactional details. Often, nothing is good enough for them. This stifles any
passion, innovation and energy in their teams. It breeds compliance, rather than
commitment. This impacts not only on the culture of the team but on the entire
organisation.
It creates a false world of isolation where bad decisions get made- Team
members become less open and honest with the leader, because they know their views
and contributions will be ignored. Information gets withheld because theres a
concern that the leader will shoot the messenger. Poor judgements get made because
the leader doesnt have the right information. Their arrogance may impede any
process of governance or due diligence, so their bad decisions go unchallenged.
It creates a narrow, short-term focus- The leader becomes focused on driving
results from the team, sometimes to the detriment of other functions in the business.
Toxic leadership is often evident amongst functional leaders, who are vying for
promotion and competing with their peers for budget and resources. Sometimes their
goal is to get the next position, not to build a performance culture. As such, they dont
take a long-term view; they focus on short-term returns.
It sets a bad example- Theres a danger that toxic behaviour can be seen as the
benchmark for success in an organisation. When that happens, line managers further
down can start to replicate the negative example of a toxic boss. Poisonous,
detrimental behaviour then starts to infect leaders at all levels of the company.
Talented people leave- Studies show that talented individuals will leave if they dont
feel connected to their employers mission, if they dont feel theyre adding value or
if theyre no longer growing. A toxic leader is unlikely
to make an employee feel connected to the purpose of the business - or feel valued.
They wont help that person grow; theyll micro-manage them ... or ignore them. So
talented people are likely to jump ship to somewhere theyll feel more appreciated.
The cost of toxic leadership therefore goes beyond the impact it has on the present-
day performance of the business. It can affect the whole future of the organisation, if
it forces out the next generation of leaders.
 Causes of Toxic Leadership

So why does it happen? Seven key drivers can bring about toxic leadership:

1. It gets rewarded-Heres the thing: people dont set out to be toxic. Usually, their intention
is to get results. However, sometimes the style they adopt, in order to do this, is over-
weighted with toxic behaviour. But if this style achieves the desired result, the leader starts to
rely on it. They then become locked in that style, conditioned to behave that way. And those
who get results get promoted. So the leader rises up the organisation and they dont change
their winning formula. Toxic behaviour remains their default response. At a very senior level,
any short-term performance improvement is rewarded by a rise in the companys share price.
The Board get their bonuses. No one challenges the bad behaviour that drives success, even
when the storm clouds are gathering. But, ultimately, that success is achieved at a very high
price.

2. The leaders ego takes over -Instead of collaborating with others and building on their
strengths, leaders start to believe they have all the answers and that theyre equipped to make
the best decisions. Rather than valuing and including their team members, they simply want
others to follow them. Anyone who dares to raise a counterview is shot down.

3. An imbalance of traits -Trusted leaders demonstrate integrity, competence and

compassion in their actions. But some leaders overly-focus on competence and they neglect
integrity and compassion. Essentially, if a leader lacks one or more of these three
fundamental traits, their behaviour will be toxic.

4. A skills deficit -Toxic leadership can stem from a lack of fundamental management skills,
such as an inability to delegate effectively or to manage upwards. If a leader doesnt delegate
well, or isnt clear about why something needs to be done, their teams will never be able to
truly deliver the requirement. The leader may then become aggressive, spiteful and
controlling but the root cause was their own inability to delegate. Likewise, if they dont
prioritise effectively - and they simply demand that everything is urgent and important - this
could be because theyre unable or theyre reluctant to challenge upwards.

5. A quick mind-People in leadership roles tend to think quickly. If someone explains a

problem to them, they may leap ahead to a solution. But rather than explain their thought
process, they will simply give the answer - sometimes rudely and abruptly while their team
member is still in midflow This creates the perception that the leader doesnt listen or theyre
not interested in the team members opinion, which can leave that person feeling highly
disengaged. But actually the leader has listened. Theyve just processed the information
quickly and theyve failed to take account of their team members feelings.

6. What goes around comes around -A toxic leader could consciously or unconsciously be
treating others in the same way that they were treated in the early days of their own career.
When organisations value transformational hero leaders, charismatic, macho leadership can
be seen as the default way to achieve results. If an individual experiences this style at an
influential stage of their development, they may try to replicate it when they eventually reach
a position of leadership. For them, thats the behaviour that brings success.

7. Imposter syndrome Some leaders have an innate fear that others will discover that
theyre not as good as theyre meant to be. Their insecurity and limiting beliefs then drive
toxic behaviour. They overcompensate by exerting their authority and belittling others, in an
attempt to shield and protect themselves.
 Examples of toxic leaders

George W. Bush

Joseph stalin
Hugo Chavez
 How successful leaders handle toxic people?

1. Solutions Only.

Misery loves company. Many toxic people get off on finding problems without concerning
themselves to provide a solution. Toxic people feel better when others join them in feeling
powerless and stuck in a negative state. They may feel a sense of control and perhaps, glee at
bringing others down to their playing field. Create a policy that allows subordinates to report
an issue, but at the same time requires them to provide a viable solution. Any time someone
starts to complain, stop the talk and refocus on the solution. If that doesnt work, then end the
conversation. Complaining is not productive nor should it be tolerated.

2. Seek To Understand.

Understanding how a toxic person is motivated, provides a leader with information on the
best way to influence the individual into behaving in more positive ways, by managing their
emotions.

The key is knowing the differences in offensive types of behaviour. Some are driven by fear
and insecurity, others are confused or feel victimized, and many need to dominate and control
other people. Those who operate on fear and insecurity, will become calmer when treated
with tolerance and reassurance. Tolerance and reassurance on the other hand, will not work
when dealing with someone who needs to control others or is a victim, if anything, it makes it
worse. Strong boundaries determining acceptable behaviour will be helpful in those cases,
while those who suffer from anxiety and tension, will need to be offered other mindful tools
for coping.

3. Remain Neutral and Practice Self-Awareness.

Falling into the drama created by someone else is unnecessary. Being pushed by someone
into an emotional response that we cant control can be stopped. Having self-awareness that
whatever someone else is going through emotionally, does not start or end with anything we
did. We all decide in a split second what we will react to, and what we can let go of. Leaders
can witness an employee engaged in turmoil, while remaining the observer and not
participate in the issue.
4. Emotional Intelligence With Action.

If a leader hasnt developed their emotional intelligence enough, then its almost impossible
for them to effectively utilize their learned managerial skills. To motivate and persuade
people, its necessary to know what they want, what they fear, how they perceive their tasks
and what their ability is to actually listen to what is said to them. Focusing on their toxic
behaviour gives them power over us. If we get mired in the stress of how hard it is to deal
with them, we never come to an equitable solution. A leader learning about his or her own
feelings and perception of events, is more apt to find an optimal way to deal with toxic
situations. Without these skills, the relationship with anyone we manage can become toxic.

5. Create a culture that strongly discourages toxic behaviour.

The book The Four Agreements states, Be Impeccable With Your Word, we always have a
choice in how we speak, including the words we use toward ourselves. If we are negative in
addressing ourselves, it is likely we will be negative in talking to others. This may lead to
victimization, an environment of blame. And if were focusing on negativity, we create more
of it. What to do? Create a positive environment. Teach self-awareness and self-responsibility
as a priority in the business. People who arent in fear and understand their role, own their
mistakes and learn from failure are authentic and operate in a positive manner. As a leader,
we not only need to practice this, we also need to remove any toxicity, which chronically
pollutes the atmosphere. If a leader, doesnt deal with a toxic employee, sometimes by
removal, other employees may view them as condoning bad behaviour and this costs a
business.
 Disadvantages of toxic leadership

1. Unwillingness to listen to feedback: Leadership is about leading people, which includes

listening to those on the front lines, those at different levels of management, and all of their
meaningful concerns. Some leaders unfortunately emphasize their own desires and ideas at
the expense of any receptivity or openness to what those who work with them have to offer.
A continued unwillingness to hear or respond to concerns meaningfully can lead to many
conflicts and problems down the line, and employee dissatisfaction, resentment, and attrition.

2. Excessive self-promotion and self-interest: While it is important for leaders to provide

guidance and clear goals to their employees, it should not be at the expense of any other goal
except their own self-advancement. Narcissism has its limits; employees can easily detect
when they are viewed more as pawns than people, and when the leaders goals do not seem to
relate to anyone elses beyond their own naked self-interest. No one likes someone who never
tries to share.

3. Lack of moral philosophy: Leaders need to have a guiding ethical core that informs their
decisions and how they decide to prioritize and work with the people around them. They need
to care about values like fairness, social justice, equitable behaviour, empathy, and
humanism. Sometimes these values can run directly in the face of other priorities like profit-
building or fame or publicity or whatever inspires people to seek power. But in the end, a
lack of ethics often leads to corruption and a human cost when people are thrown under the
bus or even at times run into legal issues for committing crimes. Ultimately, their chickens
may come home to roost.

5. Rewarding incompetence and lack of accountability: Bad leaders can sometimes be so

disconnected as to refuse to see toxic or incompetent employees also poisoning the workplace
around them, even if the leaders themselves are not engaging in those behaviours directly. If
employees see a leader ignore or even reward and protect bad behaviour, their morale and
dissatisfaction will foment accordingly, and they will understandably blame the leader for
their negative colleagues running amok.
 Toxic leadership :- how to prevent it?

Provide early career management training- L&D teams should ensure that first-
line managers are trained in the key skills of interpersonal communication, giving and
receiving feedback, motivating others and having tough conversations. Early leaders
need to learn how and when to flex their leadership style to suit the circumstances.
They should also learn to value the contributions of their team, so they manage by
praise and reward, not by finding fault in others. The right way to lead must be
instilled at the outset.

Develop trust at all levels-A development programme on building trust - with each
other and with customers - can be run for all levels of staff. This can help to champion
the value of competence, integrity and compassion in the business.

Assess leadership candidates effectively- Utilise personality, values, integrity and

motivation assessments to gain a complete picture of your leadership candidates
before theyre appointed.

Provide feedback- Leaders at all levels can benefit from performance feedback that
not only highlights their behaviour but shows whether it aligns to their personal
values. Equipping managers with higher levels of emotional intelligence helps them to
lead by example and it facilitates behavioural change. When behaviour is measured,
people are more conscious of what they do, what others do and what needs to
be done, to enhance effectiveness.

Monitor the performance of leaders- If any potential signs of derailment or any

evidence of toxic behaviour occur, nip it in the bud.

Role model good behaviour- Leaders have a responsibility to set the tone for those
below them. Showcase examples of positive leadership behaviour in your
organisation.

Retain a healthy balance of Board leadership. Board members should be appointed

who have the courage to challenge any instances of toxic behaviour in the CEO or
other senior managers.
 Our learning

Do we need toxicity to lead others? After writing our thesis, this question, one of our
future issues, has come into our mind. We think that toxicity is needed to lead and to achieve
companys goals. As we saw with Steve Job case, he succeed really well with a high level of
toxicity due to his narcissistic behaviour and need for power. However the success is in the
expense of followers well-fare. Therefore, we believe that a right well-balance of toxicity is
needed. Meaning that leaders need a certain amount of narcissism, charisma, need for power
and ambition to lead, without it we believe they cannot lead. Therefore, it depends on how
leaders are using these characteristics and for which purpose. As we can see on the following
figure, each leaders need to find their own balance.

The well balance of toxicity Source:

The Daily Dose 1996, modified by the authors Furthermore, as far as we finished our
baby, it appears that everyone had, has or will have a toxic behaviour in his or her life.
Indeed after writing this thesis, we were able to identify some toxicity in our behaviours.
That is why we would take a moment to identify our own toxic leadership style which has
been illustrated in the chapter four.

Doriane Bourdoux: The Snail I identify myself as the snail because I had a very slow rhythm
of work during this thesis. I did not feel stressed by the deadline unless for the last couples of
week. When the deadline is quite long, as it was for the thesis, I have some difficulties to
work efficiently. I like working under pressure, the emergency of the situation allows me to
push my abilities to overcome my limits.
 Conclusion

Throughout the Leadership Management in International Context program, we learned how

to become a good leader and how to transform ourselves into multipliers. However, talking
about leadership without speaking about gloomy leaders is a misconception of what
leadership is. We cannot deny the existence of it. Hence, leadership is not only about good
leaders with bravery and goodness. Leadership is a mixture between them and either the
ones who have unscrupulous and selfish ends (and use manipulation to fulfil their desire), or
the ones who want the welfare of others but miss the steps of success. In both cases they lead
to toxicity.
 REFERENCES

http://www.csu.edu.au/handbook/subjects/MGT549.html
https://www.safaribooksonline.com/library/view/academic-libraries-
and/9780081006504/xhtml/itr001.xhtml
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/culture-shrink/201607/8-traits-toxic-
leadership-avoid
https://yscouts.com/10-toxic-leadership-characteristics/
Snap Shots