Fixing a toxic work culture: How to encourage active bystanders

Summary

This article looks at encouraging better workplace cultures by encouraging people to be active bystanders. With a few simple facilitated sessions, many organisations have given their workforce the tools to provide interventions when toxic behaviours are displayed.

Content

What will I learn?

Strategies for intervening:

• Interrupt the behaviour.
• Affirm and support the target.
• Use humour to call out behavior. 
• De-escalate and calm the aggressor if other interventions fail. 
• Let bystanders know there is a clear limit.