Brené and Barrett on Why Every Leader Needs to Worry About Toxic Culture

What It Covers

Brené Brown and Barrett Guillen examine MIT Sloan research identifying five attributes of toxic workplace culture: disrespectful behavior, non-inclusivity, unethical conduct, cutthroat competition, and abusive treatment, which predict employee attrition more than compensation.

Key Questions Answered

• •Toxic Culture Drivers: Research shows disrespectful behavior (0.66 correlation) and non-inclusive environments (0.65 correlation) are the top two predictors of toxic culture, nearly tied in impact and significantly stronger than compensation concerns in driving employee turnover during organizational change.
• •Golden Unicorn Leaders: The most valuable employees combine deep organizational history and institutional knowledge with insatiable curiosity about innovation and change. These bridge-builders connect legacy systems with new approaches, making them critical during digital transformation and generational workforce shifts.
• •Irrelevance as Shame Driver: Fear of becoming irrelevant drives defensive, territorial behavior in experienced employees facing younger talent. This self-protective armoring creates a self-fulfilling prophecy where resistance to change actually accelerates irrelevance, undermining both individual careers and organizational adaptation.
• •Non-Compartmentalizable Harm: Experiencing disrespect, exclusion, unethical behavior, cutthroat competition, or abuse cannot be separated from personal life. These workplace experiences fundamentally damage psychological safety and self-worth, causing measurable physical and mental health deterioration that extends beyond working hours.