More than eight out of ten UK professionals say that “culture rot” – the slow erosion of values that once made an organisation successful – is alive and kicking in the workplace, amid fears of increasingly toxic environments that are undermining morale, collaboration, and organisational performance.
So says a new report by global recruitment firm Robert Walters which reveals the top symptons of the issue are limited incentives or rewards (41% report this); poor collaboration across the company (36%); and unclear or broken-down communications (23%).
Robert Walters North director Lucy Bisset said: “Culture rot is the silent threat currently impacting business productivity across the UK. When values erode and morale dips, businesses lose their edge. This isn’t a case of dramatic failures, instead, success is slowly diminished through everyday disengagement, broken communication loops, and declining incentives.”
The recruitment firm’s Employee Benefits Guide highlights that, while 69% of professionals were eligible to receive bonuses this year, only 37% were happy with the bonus they received. And, more broadly, UK professionals are noticing their company perks being reduced, 76% state that their benefits packages have been scaled back over the past 12 months.
Bisset added: “Comprehensive reward strategies make up a cornerstone of successful company cultures. Removing or reducing employee rewards will rapidly lead to declining productivity and quality of work as employees feel their efforts aren’t being recognised.”
Worryingly, only a minority (14%) of UK professionals now say they currently feel aligned with their company’s core values and workplace culture, meanwhile double the amount report feeling completely misaligned. Despite this, 71% of workers still say that these are essential factors they consider when applying for a job.
Bisset continued: “Consistency is key when it comes to culture. If the values and missions outlined in interviews don’t match up with daily life in the office, organisations could quickly lose the loyalty of top workers.”
Indeed – according to a recent report from Pearn Kandola, three-quarters of UK professionals have admitted to leaving a job due to issues with workplace culture.
Over half (55%) of the UK employers surveyed by Robert Walters stated that culture and values play a major role in their organisation. Meanwhile, in contrast, more than a quarter (27%) said they receive little or only superficial emphasis.
In fact, most employers (81%) agree that company-wide cost cutting has significantly weakened their overall work culture.
Bisset concluded: “With cost-cutting top of the agenda, many company cultures originally aimed at growth and innovation have turned to focus on survival.
“Organisations must look inward, and spot signs of culture rot before they settle. This means refocusing their efforts on rebuilding trust from the top, acknowledging and incentivising high performance, promoting transparent communications and encouraging collaboration not criticism.
“Good culture isn’t just branding or a nice to have. It’s a powerful performance driver and not something that can be reduced in aid of balancing budgets.”
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