Since the pandemic, the concept of organisational culture has evolved through a different workplace landscape, taking into consideration the impact of hybrid or fully remote working. Organisations have had to think differently and creatively to maintain their culture whilst navigating this new workplace terrain. So where are we now with organisational culture?

Whilst overall, hybrid and remote working has been very positive, there seems to be a pattern emerging where the day-to-day work banter is crossing a professional line which could ultimately facilitate toxic work culture. Unprofessional banter may be amusing to some but could be offensive to others, potentially resulting in formal grievances. What’s going on? Have we forgotten how to work together? And what can we do about it?   

What is Organisational Culture?

Organisational culture is the way things are done within that organisation. It is the unwritten values, beliefs, traditions, and assumptions that influence attitudes and behaviours. Culture is formed through an organisation’s history, the environment, strategy, goals, processes, and the people who lead and work for it. It’s the ‘this is how we do it here’ part of any organisation.

Having a great culture can be a reason why people stay working for an organisation. We spend more of our lives at work than we do at home so it is important for organisations to be mindful that culture can make or break a person’s decision to join, stay or leave a company.

The day-to-day banter within an office environment or over instant messenger (Team, Zoom, WhatsApp etc.) can aid office culture in a positive way. We need a bit of a chat or banter. It can be good for our wellbeing and our mental health, especially because our industry can sometimes be challenging. But occasionally, banter can go too far and make the culture pendulum swing the other way into toxic culture.

When does Banter Cross a Line?

What defines ‘the line’ within the realms of appropriate work banter?

There are several considerations around differences in sense of humour, knowing your audience and thinking about different cultural norms. For example, one person’s sense of humour may unintentionally offend someone else. I’ve heard the line ‘I was only joking’ so many times but is that a viable reason if someone takes offense? Or ‘They’re just being sensitive’ which is a form of gaslighting i.e., making the other person feel as if they are in the wrong.

Work banter sometimes shifts gear into the realms of friendship banter which is not always professional. Topics discussed with your mates at the pub is one thing but may not be appropriate for the office or when at work. So how do we identify where that ‘line’ is? I believe that ‘professional’ is the key word. Would you discuss inappropriate topics if your boss or a prestigious client was standing next to you?

Perhaps for some, that ‘professional’ line might seem harsh, a bit boring or even old fashioned. I’m not suggesting we all become robots and only speak about work tasks or not speak at all. I can imagine working in a sterile office environment with no banter is not particularly enjoyable. Whilst we are at work to get a job done, there is an element of wanting to enjoy the job and organisational culture. Maybe the line is being crossed too much and that needs to be looked at because if banter starts to get out of hand, we see an erosion of culture.  

The point of knowing your audience might seem like a reasonable argument. People often tease each other about seemingly innocuous things under the umbrella of banter including appearance, sexuality, religion, race, cultural background, personal tastes, and styles etc. These comments might be made innocently, comments could be made as compliments or under the vein of humour. The person at the receiving end may take those comments as humorous and playful banter as they were intended.  They might be fine with being teased and may encourage that form of communication because it makes them feel like ‘one of the gang’.

But what if being teased upsets that person and makes them feel negative and uncomfortable. They might still want to feel like part of the gang and so they may not shut down the banter. They may not want to be the person who is labelled as ‘not having a sense of humour’ or is ‘a bit sensitive’. They may outwardly portray themselves as someone who finds this banter funny. But inwardly, they may feel hurt or upset which may negatively impact their mental health.

In these scenario’s there is also the impact of other people who may worry that they might be teased about something similar. When we think about knowing our audience, how well do we really know our audience?

There is also the issue of swearing. For some organisations, swearing is part of the cultural DNA. I would be lying if I said I didn’t swear from time to time. But to have a culture of swearing is not professional and may be a gateway to other non-professional communication. 

Should Managers be Friends with their Team Members?

Some people believe that friendships between managers and their team members should exist because developing positive relationships is a key component of great leadership. Friendships can facilitate great productivity, strong employee retention and great employee engagement which are all very positive and good reasons to cultivate good working relationships. However, there are a few challenges that come with being friends that should be considered.

What happens when things go wrong? If you are a manager, could you sit in front of a friend and deliver difficult news i.e., they are not performing, they have done something wrong or even go through a formal disciplinary process with a friend? Or what happens when the employee confides in you, particularly if it effects their job – are they confiding in their friend or their manager? And what about the impact on other team members who may not be in the ‘friendship’ zone? They may feel excluded and treated unfairly. The manager may find that their decision making is questioned if they are seen to be favouring their ‘friends’ over others. This could negatively impact professional reputation. What about new members of the team? It can be hard for anyone starting a new role but can be even harder if their manager is friends with some of the team.

Good working relationships are important, but the line of friendship can be tricky to navigate and it’s important to be aware of the potential challenging implications and how that may negatively impact work banter and work culture.

What can we do to manage poor work banter?

When office banter goes a bit awry, one of the key things that we need to instil in our teams, and within our organisational culture, is that it is ok to speak up, to stand up for ourselves without negative judgment or retribution. We should empower employees to call out behaviour that either isn’t professional or makes someone feel uncomfortable, even if we are witnessing someone else being the subject of that poor behaviour. The challenge is that people don’t want to ‘rock the boat’ or be labelled as a ‘snitch’.

It is therefore vital for Employers, Managers, and senior team members to consider if they are instigating or facilitating poor or inappropriate behaviour at work. Managers need to set a professional tone within work and should shut down inappropriate banter or behaviour, otherwise there is an implication that this type of banter is ok. If an employee was being accused of bulling and harassment, their defence might be that ‘this happens all the time here’, there may be an argument for cultural norms being a mitigating factor.

Conclusion

We should pay more attention to organisational culture, particularly the nature and tone of banter. Many organisations are working in a hybrid way and when people are in the office, there tends to be a higher level of banter than there used to be when in the office 5 days a week. Whilst we may speak to colleagues daily via technology, sitting next to someone and having an organic conversation is a different story.

The impact of lockdown and the pandemic has shifted the role of the workplace irrevocably. Perhaps we have lost sight of what it means to work and communicate professionally or where that line of professional banter starts and stops.

I’m not suggesting that we all work in silence for fear of offending each other. I’m not suggesting we don’t have banter. What I am suggesting is that we can have a laugh (which is good for morale and culture) but not at the expense of someone else’s feelings. The alternative to inappropriate banter is not silence. It’s great conversation, that is appropriate and professional, which helps us to forge great connections in a respectful and authentic way and which cultivates great organisational culture.