We don’t blame you if you are sitting right now, thinking: “But I have never experienced any abusive behaviour in my department.” You probably haven’t, because the abusive behaviour rarely happens to the managers. The power relation is often an important factor when it comes to abusive behaviour. As a manager, you should therefore not count on being able to personally identify and quantify the extent of abusive behaviour in your own organisation without involving the people who may potentially be the victims of this type of behaviour. IT TAKES A VILLAGE When it comes to an actual change of culture, the management team needs to take the lead – but not go alone. Sexism and abusive behaviour are best overcome if we handle the challenge as a joint process where everyone takes responsibility, both as a team and individually. This is how you succeed with culture change. It begins with you. And it concerns us all. However, it is also crucial for any cultural change that the executive team, managers and HR define the framework and drive the process. It is your job to define how sexism and abusive behaviour is to be prevented and handled and where to go when it does happen. There should be clearly defined agreements and clearly defined roles. How do we prevent it from happening? Who does what when it does happen? CULTURAL CHANGE REQUIRES A NEW MINDSET It is difficult to have an out-side view of yourself as part of a culture, irrespective of whether you are a manager or an employee. So what do you do as manager with a culture that allows abusive behaviour? It is crucial that you get everybody on board for the journey, manager colleagues as well as employees. Also make sure to involve those stakeholders that you are in frequent and personal contact with. They can also affect and be affected by your culture. And remember that you only have everybody onboard when no one is in doubt that you are 100% committed to creating the desired culture. The cultural change requires a change in mindset. The idea that “I am sure everything is okay, and I have never received any complaints about my behaviour” or “How come we can no longer have any fun during the Friday bar?” should be shifted to “I respect the integrity of others and take responsibility for their well-being just as I am clear about my own limits”. This journey will take time, but you can achieve results even in the short term if you approach the process the right way from the get-go.
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