A Cure for the Common Company

4Oh, the Weather Outside Is Frightful: Social Climate

“WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WEATHER and climate?” the quiz show host asked.

“Time,” the beaming contestant answered. “Weather is what's going on today, but climate is what we have year round.”

The social climate at some companies is sunny and warm, while at others it is cloudy and can even be downright frosty sometimes, like the Arctic. I once worked at a company with a warm and collegial work environment that went sour quickly when a new CEO was hired. The new CEO started his rampage within a month by letting go of all but two executives. Sometimes the layoffs occurred in waves after shutting down whole programs. Other times it was one or two individuals. Often, new hires to replace those who were fired didn't make it a year. Guessing who would be fired next was a nonstop water cooler topic. Even I wondered when I would be let go. It was a revolving door. The turnover was so high I stopped recognizing most faces!

If you were lucky (although many thought it to be unlucky) to be part of a meeting with the CEO, you didn't want to sit in the “hot seat.” That was the seat to the immediate right of the source of our discontent. I sat there on many occasions. My job and ethical obligation were to advise the CEO on the science of prevention and behavior change. Unfortunately, I had a lot of advising to do, and most often it wasn't solicited. One day my boss called me into his office. My position had been eliminated. No surprise. ...