Simon Maier - The Evil Executive: Encounters with malicious and abusive behaviour in the workplace

2016 Simon Maier

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National Library Board Singapore Cataloguing in Publication Data:

Name(s): Maier, Simon.

Title: The evil executive : encounters with malicious and abusive behaviour in the workplace / Simon Maier.

Description: Singapore : Marshall Cavendish Business, [2016]

Identifier(s): OCN 953678852 | eISBN: 978 981 4751 70 4

Subject(s): LCSH: Bullying in the workplacePrevention | Racism in the workplacePrevention. | Abuse of administrative powerPrevention. | Personnel management. | Communication in management.

Classification: DDC 658.382dc23

Design by Bernard Go Kwang Meng

Printed in Singapore by JCS Digital Solutions Pte Ltd

Dedicated to the victims of evil people not only the victims Ive met, but those many, many whom I havent

Hell is empty,
All the devils are here.

The Tempest, Act I, Scene 2

And in my voice most
welcome shall you be

As You Like It, Act II, Scene 4

We all probably know someone, in authority or otherwise, who has at one time or another bullied us. Thats not uncommonfrom the sibling at home to the thug in the playground to the manager at work who is extremely unpleasant on a regular basis and has a bunch of acolytes who are co-bullies. Sometimes we can stand up to these people; sometimes we can get support from those around usour parents, other siblings, our boss, our friends, sometimes our HR departments, our unions or the law. Sometimes we do nothing, whether out of shame, fear or simply helplessness. Sometimes the results are severe and painful in all sorts of ways. Bullying of any kind is nasty, often long-lastingeven once it has stoppedand can cause huge problems at later stages in our lives, no matter how old we are. And this can occur socially, at home or at work. Anywhere.

Bullying is one thing, but it can go a stage further and manifest itself as something that warrants the word evil. This is when someone in authorityor even an associate, colleague or peercauses real, lasting damage, physical or mental (or both), to those with whom they work. The line between bullying and evil can be thin and there is often no real demarcation, just levels of pain caused.

This is a universal issue. Evil is not limited by class, creed, money, position, sex, nationality, faith, size or age. There are managers in the world of business and politics, in education, in the service industries, in construction, in factories, in the high street and in the shopping mallsindeed, in all walks of lifewho are psychotic, willing to cause extreme distress and who are able to manipulate people, harm them with impunity, cheat and lie.

Evil executives find their way into corporate, political and organizational life easily. As job candidates, they are able to project candour, trust and complete worthiness. They are often very good actors. They can dissemble. They may, indeed, have done well in their own right academically or on the back of others and they may be regarded within their professions as brilliant, honourable, a safe pair of hands and successful. Sometimes these people get away with their ghastliness. Sometimes they are exposed. In every case, they cause damage.

Have no doubtthese people are monsters. This may sound like hyperbole, but it really isnt. These directors, managers and front-line supervisors can turn a productive workplace into a morass of hate and fear. They make working life truly miserable, resulting in less engagement, lower job satisfaction, fading morale, increased absenteeism, physical illness, mental stress and, occasionally, even death.

Moreover, monsters at work can wreak legal havoc for a company, causing bad publicity and tainting its brand image. This usually occurs when workers, victimized by brutish bosses, go public because they just cant take any more abuse. Or it occurs when the media discovers whats going on and opens up the can of worms. Or, indeed, it occurs when a business goes bust or when its discovered that someone at the very top has been using an organization illegally or immorally for huge personal gain.

Exposure, though, doesnt occur enough. Evil executives are not always easy to spot; or, if they are, they are certainly not easy to stop or challenge. Often the victim is isolated and has only a small voice or none at all. Or the victim is unable to do anything, having become a nervous wreck. Usually, the victims suffer, leave and, maybe, just maybe, die in silence.

Although most good quality and well-managed organizations foster positive environments on a macro level, its likely that at least a few mid-level toxic managers are causing terrible problems at the micro level. That is, behind the scenes and without the knowledge of people at the very top. Evil executives can often be malicious, vicious, insidious or draconian in their actions towards targeted employees. They isolate staff, then divide and conquer by targeting certain workers for abuse and others for favouritism. The focus is often based on non-job-related factors. And once the target is in their grasp, they seldom let go.

Evil executives might damage staff with an abundance of malice under the guise of micromanagement. They use multiple fear tactics, including, but not limited to, intimidating employees with frequent, shouted verbal outbursts ridden with expletives and crude physical gestures. They humiliate victims by demeaning them during meetings or in front of co-workers. They may constantly look over their targets shoulders, literally and figuratively, for the smallest mistake or excuse to castigate them (sometimes with violence). They set impossible-to-complete assignments and laborious administrative tasks on even senior employees. They will do anything to strengthen their own position and maintain power.