The Weaponry of Inaction in Cultural Change            

I think one of the most underdiscussed topics in leadership is inaction.

Bullying, poor culture, health and safety breaches, misogyny, racism or any other inappropriate behaviours in the workplace – even in organisations full of otherwise good people – happen often not because of singular bad actions, but often hundreds of inactions.

And the more we stand by, the more complicit we are.

I’ve had many firsthand experiences of misogyny and bullying in the workplace, as well as some downright undermining treatment by members of senior leadership teams. No doubt you will have dealt with more than your fair share, and seen it happen to others, too.

So, I want to explore inaction, what it means, and how it can often be tracked back to earlier inaction of unaddressed behavioural flags.

Not seeing is not an excuse if the red flags were there

Whether experiencing it firsthand, or seeing it happen to others, what’s consistently heartbreaking has always been the actions (or inactions) of the managers or owners directly above the target of bad actions.

Maybe the manager saw it, and maybe they didn’t. Often they believe so firmly in the goodness of their people that they chose to ignore the obvious behaviours taking place – even to the point of denying evidence, or failing to investigate or be specific in addressing it i.e. “they aren’t like that in front of me”.

Denial is an enticing option, but it robs the organisation of all good work towards positive culture, as well as exposing the culture to significant risk of the above issues.

The steps are simple for leaders who chose to move beyond inaction and into proactive steps:

1. Drop the denial. Acknowledge the significance of events and red flags as they happen.
2. Investigate thoroughly by gathering specific details and data.
3. Call out the lies as lies and address them.
4. Then ask yourself, How can this be helped? Where are the various points in this event that can be supported? Do not be distracted by the easy direction of denial and downplaying that happens by everyone caught out in bad conduct or inaction. Address the bystanders and the various other people involved in any complicity; it’s rarely just one person.
5. Circle back and ensure communication is reaching you so that future red flags are brought to you.
6. Remember, culture change is a long-term project and requires a long-term commitment of consistent and bold address of behaviours that run against your organisational ethics.

Remember what you have seen will likely be the tip of an iceberg. Do not automatically assume it’s a single event. Be open to the emergence of patterns of behaviour once you start asking real questions.

Tell it straight

We have an agreement in my home, and it applies to my children, foster children, and even playdates: if something happens, and you tell the truth, then I cannot and will not get mad at you. I respect you for telling the truth. There won’t be punishment, but there will be change.

To be truthful is an act of courage – and we should be encouraged to be braver in all spaces.

So often people will say they will do something, and they don’t. They will make a commitment, and not keep it. They will downplay events and subtly cover things up. Lies take many forms.

As leaders, it is so powerful to use straight-talking. Call lies out for what they are. Address the inauthenticity and cover-ups – because they will happen. When caught out, we tend to want to cover our own skins (this is a very human response). But rather than shrug it off as a natural human behaviour, create an environment where things are addressed directly, and where honesty becomes more valuable than approval, social niceties, and ‘not ruffling feathers’.

Address the complicity of bystanders

When anything happens in your organisation that is misaligned to the standards and ethics you hold – such as a bullying event or safety breach – look not just at the actions of those involved, but also the behaviour of bystanders.

Who watched on, walked by, laughed along with the joke, turned away? Who took no action? Or is ‘pretending’ they didn’t know?

These are often the key people you can change – because they probably felt uncomfortable with what took place but lacked the leadership skills to do anything about it.  

To address these people:

1. Call them out for the complicity of their inaction, precisely because it will be uncomfortable. Don’t believe them when they say they didn’t know. Inaction won’t sit well with their ethics, and this is why these people are the key agents for change.
2. When these bystanders feel the sting of complicity then they can be helped towards identifying what actions they could take instead.
3. Then you have more good leaders forming as a team affecting change.

Don’t be seduced by bluster

Often, when bad things happen, a resounding response is outrage. I saw a boy assault a girl in a classroom this week by burning, and the parents were outraged. Especially the fathers.

But as a week passed, not a single proactive action was taken by any of those who expressed this response. What happened?

It was easy to feel these angry men cared deeply about the assault, but they did nothing. Inaction was easier.

So, when addressing people like this, be vigilant in observing what actions are actually being done. A loud emotional response is often a disguise for inaction. Ask: What proactive step to help do you intend to take? What have you chosen to do? How have you checked that its successful? What further is required?

Inaction is an action

Sometimes inaction is a powerful action in itself. It can hold back your fury when it’s not going to be proactive or helpful. It can be silence when a group needs to feel the impact of what was said or done. It can give space for another to take a key action ahead of your own visibility. But I think the most honest course of discussion to start recognising when inaction is action, and when it’s a failure to act. Failure to act can also be a form of assault in itself.

There will always be bad moments and bad actions by certain people. But if all the other inactions did not empower them, then they would often be intercepted and helped far earlier, and so much good leadership would start to emerge.

We are talking about encouraging and, in fact demanding, good people to take action when ethics are breached.

If we want to create a better world, then we need to ask more of our leaders (at all levels) – and that means preventing bad behaviours is as important and promoting good ones. We need to apply the right kind of pressure at the right times. This is the opportunity that leadership offers to all of us.