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Workplace Culture Quotes

Browse 70 quotes about Workplace Culture.

Workplace Culture Quotes

“If you tour any workplace, you will see countless logos and banners paying lip service to freedom of speech, democracy, logos like ‘speak up, speak out’, creativity, innovation, and on and on goes the list of flashy words and adjectives that companies and corporations want their employees (and outsiders) to believe are part of their work ethics and culture. Yet, most employees learn at the earliest stages of their careers that these bogus adjectives will get them fired, if they are naïve enough to believe in – let alone act on – them.”

WorkIntegrityLaborAbuseControlAmerican CultureWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CulturePower Relations
Author:Louis Yako
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“In reality, in most American companies, only few handpicked—arguably appointed— individuals in powerful positions; positions like leadership, finance, treasury, advisory, and so on, have the last say in what matters. Their words, no matter how nonsensical, are treated as the ultimate wisdom. Their silences are emulated by everyone else working under them, regardless of any human, capital, or ethical costs resulting from such silences. These powerful individuals are often so emotionally and intellectually abusive that employees treat even their most absurd suggestions as roadmaps dictating the direction of any company or project at hand.”

FearWorkAmerican CultureWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureWorkplace BiasLabor ActivismPower Relations
Author:Louis Yako
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“I have lost track of the number of times when I chatted with DEI professionals or even diversity hires of different races and backgrounds who painfully told me that they are put in a position that makes them incapable of making any meaningful changes in their workplace. That their job is primarily to be tokenized and make the institution look and feel good, but in reality they – and any diverse person in their workplace – feel totally paralyzed in environments that look good, but are in fact extremely controlled by the few privileged at the top. [From “The Trump Age: Critical Questions” published on CounterPunch on June 23, 2023]”

DiversityEqualitySocial ChangeEquityDiversity And InclusionCorporate CultureWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureTokenism
Author:Louis Yako
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“[M]ost American workplaces operate in ways that make it almost impossible for anyone to speak truth to power or challenge the status quo and be able to thrive or advance in their career. 'If you dare to open your mouth, you basically ruin your career,' is one of the most common lines I hear from people when I ask them about what usually stops them from saying or doing what they see as the right thing to do.”

AmericaIntegrityLaborWork EthicAmerican CultureIntimidationWorkplace CultureWorkplace AttitudesLabor Activism
Author:Louis Yako
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“When asked, every other White privileged American—especially males—will tell you that their dream is to have their own company and brew their own beer! Ironically, their dream springs out of the total misery and toxic work environments they experience. Yet, instead of challenging and changing this reality for all, they dream of walking away and having their own company to repeat the same old game again.”

FearChangeInjusticeAmerican DreamWork EthicWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureMidnset
Author:Louis Yako
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“[honest and talented American employees] spend so much time in mediocre meetings listening to superficial ideas presented by the powerful few at every workplace. Their hearts and minds are constantly agonizing as they see the mediocrity of the powerful few being praised by circles of cheerleaders found in most workplaces. The cheerleaders are usually there for the paycheck, and they do a great job in making mediocrity be mistaken for creativity and innovation.”

CreativityLaborCorruptionAmerican CultureIntimidationPaychecksWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureWorkplace AttitudesCheerleaders
Author:Louis Yako
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“Another way to foster a sense of belonging for employees is to form teams that are encouraged to engage in collective problem-solving. This affords regular opportunities for all members of the teams to express their views and contribute their talents. But leaders of these teams should establish the norm that colleagues treat each other with respect, making room for everyone in discussions and listening thoughtfully to one another. As we saw with high-status students leading the way in establishing an antibullying norm in schools, managers, as the highest-status member of a team, can set powerful norms. A key goal is foster what leadership scholar Amy Edmonson calls psychological safety, which she describes as "the belief that the environment is safe for interpersonal risk taking. People feel able to speak up when needed--with relevant ideas, questions, or concerns--without being shut down in a gratuitous way. Psychological safety is present when colleagues trust and respect each other and feel able, even obligated, to be candid." No matter how ingenious or talented individual team members are, if the climate does not foster the psychological safety people need to express themselves, they are likely to hold back on valuable input.”

FeedbackIngenuityCorporate CultureWorkplace CultureWork CulturePsychological Safety
Book:Belonging: The Science of Creating Connection and Bridging Divides - Library Edition
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“As a result, we now see a plethora of MBA-holders mushrooming in and infiltrating every sector, company and corporation, no matter how large or small. With rare exceptions, these MBA-holders hardly bring any creativity or depth to the table. For them, everything is about profits and building their own image and profile. They seldom care about the well-being and advancement of those who fall under the mercy of their business ideas. They are usually people who, like a herd of sheep, have been told that an MBA is the easiest and fastest route to prosperity and advancement, so they go to school, get that MBA, and from there wreak havoc in every place they set their foot on. With their mediocrity and strong desire to advance at any cost, their management styles often create a culture of fear and intimidation among employees. This culture is usually characterized by serious retaliation if anyone dares to open their mouth to challenge their authority or critique their ideas.”

CreativityMediocrityManagement And LeadershipCorporate CultureWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureManaging PeopleWorkplace BiasLabor Activism
Author:Louis Yako
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“In brief, anyone who has worked at one or two workplaces in America is familiar with that type of middle management or upper management individuals whose job is almost exclusively to create unnecessary tasks and procedures that turn the lives of employees under them into an absolute nightmare. What usually happens under such toxic circumstances? Nothing. A deafening silence from most employees. In fact, many employees not only remain silent out of fear of getting fired, they go as far as putting on fake smiles (or even loud laughter) to survive. Some walk around the office with the attitude of ‘I love my job!’ ‘I love my life!’ ‘I am living the dream!’ to please middle and upper management.”

EthicsCorruptionAmerican CultureCorporate CultureWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureWorkplace AttitudesCheerleadersLabor Activism
Author:Louis Yako
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“Just as most American employers give us ‘at will’ employments, our entire existence has become subject to their will. We have arrived at a point where most of our stress is a result of not knowing whether we will get the next paycheck. Exploitative employers love it this way. So long as we are afraid, they are sure to get 100 percent submission from us. We cannot let our toxic way of working be accepted as the norm and as the typical American work ethics. We deserve and can do much, much better than this.”

JusticeLaborEqualityEmploymentWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureEmployee ExperienceEmployee Rights
Author:Louis Yako
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“Many mistakenly think that remaining silent until finding another job is the safest and least costly approach, only to find out once at a new job, that the same old game starts all over again. The reason for this is simple: there is no escape. The issue is not about a specific company or corporation, even though it is true that some of them are much more oppressive and unbearable than others. The reason why changing employers never solves the problem is because the problem is systematic, structural, and indeed cultural. The fact that this reality of toxic workplaces has been tolerated for so long has turned it into a normalized and acceptable culture. It is very dangerous when anything becomes an accepted culture or norm. This point is crucial to ponder if we want to resist and change this unhealthy culture. The toxicity of many workplaces in America has been so normalized that people do not even question them anymore. Also, predictably, over time, things normalized become moralized. By moralized I mean that this toxicity is now considered as a moral way of earning one’s living, despite much evidence that it’s at once unhealthy and demoralizing. It is considered moral to work hard to earn your living, and it has become accepted that work is simply what it is and there is nothing you can do about it.”

PowerCapitalismLaborIntimidationToxic RelationshipsWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureEmployee RelationsEmployee ExperienceWorkplace Attitudes
Author:Louis Yako
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“No phrases are more commonly used in American English (and culture) than, ‘it is what it is,’ and ‘do what you gotta do!’ The first phrase indicates the acceptance of or resignation to a situation that cannot be changed. The second phrase is a way to say that you need to do what you need to do to take care of your problems. Yet, it is also well known in American culture that, no matter what, you must always ‘play it safe!’ This is precisely the problem we are dealing with—the fact that most people are suffering but also are advised to play it safe. Yet, are we safe? If we consider the mental, intellectual, and cultural costs that come with ‘playing it safe’, is anyone ever safe?”

FearLaborCorporationsAmerican CultureIntimidationWorkplace PoliticsWorkplace CultureEmployee RelationsWorkplace Attitudes
Author:Louis Yako
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“Those who have never worked in libraries view library work with the empty awe of admiration (Seale & Mirza, 2019), as a place where librarians fulfill a noble calling (Ettarh, 2018). Library employees, however, at times, experience their workplaces as marginalizing, demanding, disempowering, discouraging, frustrating, and draining, yet still are drawn into a chance to make a difference and follow their passions. Within this context, librarians may commit sabotage for several reasons. Chapter 7”

LibrariesWorkplace Culture
Book:Libraries as Dysfunctional Organizations and Workplaces
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“Middle managers sit at a curious intersection of power; they are a significant factor in employee morale (Glusker et al., 2022; Kennedy & Garewal, 2020), yet relatively powerless to effect meaningful organ- izational change beyond their unit. Middle managers are subject to undermining from every level in academic libraries, whether from peer managers establishing their turf, from unhappy or ambitious direct reports, or from senior leaders that use shakeups or austerity measures as a way to establish power and demonstrate innov- ation and impact to campus leaders. Chapter 7”

LibrariesWorkplace Culture
Book:Libraries as Dysfunctional Organizations and Workplaces
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“Jellyfish Managers, much like their aquatic namesakes, have a nervous system but neither spine nor brain; with the same orifice functioning as both mouth and anus; randomly stinging whoever is in their path, and unaware that their actions might one day get them squished.”

Employee EngagementWorkplace CultureThe Workplace ZombieJellyfish Managers
Book:The Workplace Zombie: One Bureaucrat’s Path to Better Understanding the Virus and Its Vectors
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“DOLINSKY’S IMPERATIVE: “Individuals must take it upon themselves to form and grow bubbles of civility within and external to their organizations. Doing so creates new and deeper relationships across stakeholders. It prevents bureaucratic claptrap and friction from descending like a toxic cloud of dissatisfaction. Friction is reduced, and the spread of the workplace zombie virus is slowed.”

Employee EngagementWorkplace CultureDolinsky S Imperative
Book:The Workplace Zombie: One Bureaucrat’s Path to Better Understanding the Virus and Its Vectors
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“Delusionary Defilade: Leaders who surround themselves with sycophants remain ‘protected’ from seeing things as they are, continue to see things as they want them to be, and delusions of adequacy often follow. This is usually evidenced by a ‘leader’ telling a group to ‘not let perfect be the enemy of good’ when no plan, perfect or good, is likely to be presented as a course of action. The idea of ‘how things should be’ regarding the problem itself or the team’s capabilities, rather than understanding how things ‘are,’ will result in an incorrect orientation that prevents even a good plan from emerging.”

Decision MakingWorkplace CultureThe Workplace Zombie
Book:The Workplace Zombie: One Bureaucrat’s Path to Better Understanding the Virus and Its Vectors
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“How unfair it was that women have to make the choice to be nice or to be powerful. “Don’t let what other people say, good or bad, pressure you into feeling small. The world does that enough to women. I won’t let it happen to my own sister.”

Women EmpowermentWomen S StrengthWorkplace CultureFairness And Unfairness
Book:Ladies of the House: A Modern Retelling of Sense and Sensibility
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