Avoiding a toxic culture: Uber was hailed as one of the most successful tech start-ups in the tech boom period.
Yet in 2017 there was a very public meltdown due to a toxic culture. As a result there were internal investigations, a number of staff were fired, and the CEO Travis Kalanick resigned.
Many reasons for this crisis can be identified, but it was clear to see how a lack of collaboration and trust in particular led to a degeneration in the quality of relationships and led to a toxic culture. There are several reasons why this can happen, including mixed messaging.
One of Uber’s problems can be seen to have originated from giving mixed messaging related to the need to pursue both individual goals and shared team or company goals. Founder Travis Kalanick set up a “winner-takes-all” mentality before CEO Dara Khosrowshahi replaced the values with more inclusive “cultural norms” designed to promote collaborative goals.
In reflecting on the past challenges, Khosrowshahi shared in a LinkedIn post, “(The value of) ‘toe-stepping’ was meant to encourage employees to share their ideas regardless of their seniority or position in the company, but too often it was used as an excuse for being an asshole.”
As he said at the time “The culture and approach that got Uber where it is today is not what will get us to the next level. As we move from an era of growth at all costs to one of responsible growth, our culture needs to evolve.”
Recognising the impact on Uber’s failure, Khosrowshahi realised that, “We were too busy winning, talking about how we can change the world, and how nothing could go wrong. Where we wound up once the winning stopped, the fall was really tough, and the company had not built the framework to resist this.”
The new cultural norms were drafted collaboratively by 20 working groups made up of employees, which helped to create a shared sense of purpose and a shared vision.
5 co-creation principles for more collaborative practices
Mixed messaging is very common, and it can be quite dangerous.
Prioritising individual success over group needs has clear consequences. The individual will often defect if they feel their own needs are compromised. Focusing on winning at all costs can also backfire if the individual translates this into winning at the cost of the group.
Taking the same collaborative co-creation approach as Khosrowshahi can, however, help to prepare any organisation for the challenges of a competitive environment.
Following are some principles that can be applied to ensure more collaborative practices.
- Audit current values and practices. Check that there is clear alignment rather than mixed messaging that can become destructive.
- Seek out, acknowledge and discuss any competing demands. Are you only a team in the sense that you help each individual achieve their individual goals? Or are you working together towards team goals? Be clear upfront.
- Don’t assume to know the rules/expectations of collaboration. Keep a finger on the pulse, and ensure you have a realistic insight into collaboration experiences to identify ant issues or challenges quickly.
- Don’t focus on the wrong aspects of achieving a goal. Be careful about being so busy focusing on winning at all costs as a company as the drive to win can blind people to the core purpose.
- Don’t be ignorant to the overall architecture of the situation. There are so many layers of meaning when it comes to ‘team building’ that you need to be mindful of. Create a more strategic and constructive ‘team development’ environment that sets everyone up for success.
Translating team building into real team development
Even supposed corporate 'culture change' exercise like 'team building' can be counterproductive if not managed effectively. There are a few issues to address and actions that can be taken to avoid these experiences backfiring.
First, be aware of the artificial reality of ‘team building’ disguised as an endurance challenge or a ‘competitive race’ and trumpeted through the genre of contemporary reality TV, which needs to be challenged. Setting your own expectations and norms in collaboration with people at all levels of the organisation can better set you all up for success.
Second, be aware of the 'effervescence effect'. Even the most popular of traditional 'teambuilding' activities allow for, at best, recreational fun. When a group engages in an activity together, it creates ‘collective effervescence,’ which can excite and unify the participants.
However, without a well-facilitated “aha” learning experience specifically designed into the activity, this temporary effervescence is unlikely to lead to lasting change.
Corporate teams need to unpack and rethink what ‘team building’ really is, and they need to be prepared to look at alternatives and find true collaboration. Only then can collaboration become a constructive, meaningful, and actionable outcome that enables inclusive and sustainable growth.
Tirian is a leading international organizational learning and development consulting company. Tirian specializes in organization innovation and transformation through strategic innovative leadership and team development. The company produces original high quality and engaging workshop and seminar programs, keynote presentations and individual resources to provide tools and strategies for individual and organizational change. Tirian also offers a range of integrated coaching and consulting services to ensure effective implementation over the long term.
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