Toxic Work Cultures

This article exposes how traditional interviews often fail to identify the most capable candidates, especially those affected by illness, trauma, anxiety, or past workplace bullying. It explores how the brain’s threat response (fight-flight-freeze) impairs verbal performance—leading strong professionals to “fail” interviews despite having deep expertise. Through real-life examples, it reveals how lack of emotional intelligence, poor question design, and rigid recruitment practices undermine fairness and exclude highly competent people. It argues that if organisations truly want to hire great leaders—not just confident speakers—they must redesign interviews with empathy, flexibility, and psychological insight.

Why corporate leaders need a greater understanding of workplace culture. Uncovering the myths of culture and how to identify toxic environments and how to create a psychological safe work space.

This article delves into the critical importance of aligning organizational values with corporate behaviors, examining the challenges companies face when exceptional talent exhibits behaviors that conflict with established ethics and culture. It offers insights into fostering a workplace environment where values are upheld consistently at all levels, ensuring sustained trust and integrity in business operations.

This article explores the critical role human resource teams play in shaping organisational culture and how failures in addressing workplace issues can inadvertently sustain negative and toxic environments. It sheds light on the mechanisms through which ineffective HR practices may enable silence and inaction, offering insights into fostering healthier workplace dynamics.