‘Speak now or forever hold your peace’

We remember those words from weddings, but very few ever reflect on its relevance in the workplace or human relations. The statement tells us to speak up if we know something is bad or illegal and if we don’t, it tells us to forever keep our mouth shut in peace. If you keep your mouth shut, you will find no peace!

Sadly, we do not make a practice of using the same phrase regularly at work and in professional relationships. Fact is, the need to speak up at work and in public spaces is currently a very serious need among companies in the Philippines.

Coming out of the COVID pandemic, many CEOs have highlighted what they call “quiet quitting,” where employees have toned down or eased up on their intensity, involvement or drive at work. Employees or executives don’t necessarily resign or leave their jobs, they simply shift to minimum output, work for the pay and not go for the gold or the career goal.

This comes from the realization that COVID kills and it killed many friends and family who never had a chance to live life or reach retirement. As a result, many of us are now mindful of family time, going for more vacations or trips and attending reunions with excitement. Hopefully it leads towards a reset for authentic work/life balance.

While HR managers and owners continue trying to figure out how to deal with the quiet quitting phenomenon, I have observed two other behaviors that have gotten worse among many top executives and companies. Both are destructive and damaging to organizations and business bottom line, but decision makers simply hope it would all go away or resolve itself and sometimes it does, to the loss of the companies.

The two things are Ugly Bosses and Silent Quitters.

In an environment where people are quiet quitting at work, the situation creates opportunities for the less qualified, under-developed or immature but ambitious individuals to rise above the rest. In some cases, outsiders who are cultural misfits in the workplace come in and try to redefine the rules and culture through flashy presentations, acronyms and lots and lots of hype. These “misfits” ultimately become the Ugly Bosses.

I have seen so many of these “misfits” come in with their MBAs, their overseas certificates or list of multi-national corporate employers. I don’t call them “misfits” as a derogatory reference but as a matter of fact. In some cases, business owners have hired people from other industries, presuming that an MBA or foreign degree and schooling covers the challenges and differences among industries.

Bananas and reporters are two different things. Cars may all look alike and just differ in brands, but culture and nationalities make a greater impact on the outcome. Time and again I have seen MNCs assume that the success of one guy in one continent can be duplicated in another.

In recent times I have heard about and seen “dual culture executives,” such as Japanese executives who stewed in the challenging and sometimes rough business environments like Australia’s car market, find their way into the Philippines either as a challenge or demotion (smaller territory/limited growth).

With very limited familiarization and serious cultural/business ignorance, they rely on charts, surveys, excel and impose their will on their team, their dealers, etc. No more nice guys, just bottom lines and penalties. Applying the same strategy in the Philippines has historically proven disastrous for executives and businesses, but no one speaks up or steps up.

There is also the ignored Peter Principle where local business owners keep promoting managers until they finally reach a level of incompetence. A side effect of the Peter Principle is that you become frustrated and exasperated and turn into an Ugly Boss in conduct or practice and can’t turn the profit and hurt the business.

The twin of the Ugly Boss is the Silent Quitter. These are highly skilled and qualified individuals who won’t speak up, avoid being seen as critical or uncooperative, stay below the radar and simply protect their ass! They have earned tenure or seniority in the organization, established a good reputation but, like the Quiet Quitters, they now think about Me and not Us or Others.

Either way the results are the same. Instead of calling out what is wrong with an executive’s conduct or what is wrong in policy designs and decisions, these Silent Quitters assume that they can’t change the current mind set and speaking out will not accomplish anything. The worst part is that they ultimately jump ship, leaving the helpless behind.

This is tragic. We hate on the Ugly Bosses for all the difficulty they inflict on employees, partners, etc. We anguish at their lack of realization and insensitivity and curse them behind their backs. And when you can’t take it anymore, you walk out.

I have found myself on numerous occasions face to face with so-called Ugly Bosses, people in authority, with power and even those with nasty reputations. When you establish two important things, you will get their attention and eventually their respect: First is your sincerity to help and second your willingness to be rejected or to lose your place in the interest of speaking the truth. Respect begets respect. Take the time to prepare, properly present, be willing to hear, learn and understand, and humbly offer solutions and be available, but never make that part of your agenda.

If you have to, or decide to quit, then quit but quit clean. Get everything off your chest and out of your head. I am a believer in the value of exit interviews, and we all owe it to each other to clear up and clear out all issues. Ugly Bosses come alive because of Silent Quitters. Choose to speak, then forever have your peace.

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