If you thought the days of the “in” crowd were left lingering in the high school cafeteria, your employed adult self may be disappointed. Workplaces often experience their versions of cliques where certain team members create an impenetrable force, implying a social hierarchy that can certainly impede collaboration and productivity.
Grouping up is a natural human instinct, but if workplace cliques become intense and exclusive, it could make managing conflict at work a necessary leadership skill to have at the ready, especially if you’re the boss.
Identifying Cliques and Favoritism
Recognizing work cliques and favoritism can be tricky, especially since these behaviors often masquerade as harmless social interactions. However, they can easily become a cause for conflict, and their negative impact on team dynamics and morale can be significant.
Here are specific signs and symptoms that indicate the presence of cliques and favoritism in your workplace:
1. Exclusive Lunch or Social Groups
One of the most obvious signs of work cliques is when certain groups of co-workers consistently spend time together during breaks, lunches, or after-work events without inviting others. For instance, you might notice that one group of co-workers always heads out for lunch together while leaving others out.
This behavior not only fosters exclusivity but can also make team members feel intimidated or undervalued, especially if these social outings often include discussions about work-related matters.
2. Unequal Access to Opportunities
Favoritism often manifests through unequal access to opportunities like promotions, training, or challenging projects. If the leadership team consistently selects the same individuals for these opportunities, despite comparable work history or qualifications among other co-workers, this could be a clear sign of favoritism.
For example, if a manager always assigns high-profile projects to a specific employee who shares a personal connection or spends time outside of work with them, other team members may start to feel sidelined.
3. Closed-Door Meetings
Another indicator of cliques and favoritism is the frequent occurrence of closed-door meetings that involve only a select few employees. These meetings can foster suspicion among the entire team, especially when the discussions are not communicated transparently.
If certain employees consistently receive information and decisions from these meetings before the rest of the team, it’s a red flag that favoritism or cliques are at play.
4. Repeated Social Interactions Outside of Work
When co-workers frequently socialize outside of work in a way that excludes others, this can lead to the formation of tight-knit cliques. While it’s human nature to gravitate toward like-minded people, these exclusive groups can create barriers to collaboration and open communication.
For instance, if new hires notice that a group of long-time employees frequently organizes weekend get-togethers without inviting them, it can make their new job environment feel unwelcoming and cliquish.
5. Disproportionate Recognition and Praise
Finally, favoritism can often be detected through the disproportionate recognition or praise given to certain employees. If a manager frequently acknowledges the achievements of a specific employee while neglecting to recognize the efforts of others who have also contributed significantly, this could indicate favoritism. This behavior can demoralize other co-workers and lead to a decline in team morale and productivity.
Importance of Addressing Cliques and Favoritism in the Workplace
Understanding how to deal with cliques and favoritism at work is crucial for maintaining a healthy and productive work environment. When workplace cliques and favoritism are left unchecked, they can erode the very foundation of an organization, leading to a toxic culture that impacts other employees, team dynamics, and overall business success.
Here are reasons why addressing these issues should be a top priority:
1. Erosion of Team Morale
When cliques form within an organization, they create an atmosphere of exclusivity that can lead to the alienation of other employees. Clique members often create their own inner circle, which can make other employees feel undervalued and isolated. This division can severely impact team morale, making it difficult for the entire team to collaborate effectively. Workplace cliques can lead to a decline in employee engagement as those outside the clique feel less motivated to contribute to a team that doesn’t value their input.
2. Stifling of Innovation and Creativity
One of the significant dangers of workplace cliques is the way they stifle innovation. Clique members often surround themselves with like-minded people, which can limit the diversity of thought within a team. This lack of diverse perspectives can hinder creative problem-solving and innovation.
Additionally, maintaining professionalism becomes challenging when cliques dominate the workplace, as they can create an environment where certain voices are prioritized over others. When upper management fails to address favoritism and cliques, the organization may miss out on the fresh ideas that come from a more inclusive and varied group of thinkers.
3. Increase in Office Gossip and Rumors
Unchecked workplace cliques and favoritism can fuel office gossip and rumors. When human beings form groups, especially in a work environment, it’s natural for them to share information.
However, when these groups become cliques, the information shared often turns into gossip that can harm the reputations of other employees and create an atmosphere of mistrust. This is why dealing with gossip and rumors proactively is crucial—left unaddressed, gossip can spread rapidly, leading to conflicts that human resources may struggle to resolve. Addressing cliques and favoritism is essential to maintaining a healthy workplace culture.
4. Impact on Employee Retention
When new hires or even long-standing employees feel like outsiders due to established workplace cliques or perceive favoritism from upper management, they may be more inclined to leave the organization. Employees join a company hoping to build workplace relationships that support their professional growth.
If they feel excluded or undervalued, they may seek opportunities elsewhere, resulting in higher turnover rates. Retaining talent becomes particularly a challenge for HR managers when employees feel their contributions are overlooked because of favoritism.
5. Legal and Ethical Risks
Ignoring cliques and favoritism in the workplace can also expose the organization to legal and ethical risks. Favoritism can be seen as a form of discrimination, especially if it results in unfair treatment of other employees. This can lead to grievances, legal complaints, and even lawsuits, which can damage the company’s reputation and financial standing.
Additionally, failing to address these issues can indicate a lack of commitment to ethical business practices, further damaging the organization’s standing in the eyes of both employees and customers.
Managing Conflict at Work by Addressing Cliques
Office politics plague nearly every office. As long as you have multiple employees, managing conflict at work is built into leadership job descriptions. The biggest difference between an office clique and a run-of-the-mill work team is that members of the clique are linked together by some common interest beyond work, and they exclude others from their group, even if only subtly.
Dealing with conflict in the workplace can become more difficult if there are firm lines dividing employees by status and inclusion, so start with these steps if you’re noticing cliques taking over your company culture:
Reward Inclusion
Joining a clique at work can give employees a sense of belonging, security, and identity. So find ways to help your employees achieve that in a way that’s more effective and inclusive to everyone. Create a company culture that’s cohesive and desirable—one where employees feel they can express themselves and mingle with folks in different roles.
You can improve company culture by scheduling events that tap into collective interests, where inviting others to join is rewarded. That’s one way to learn how to handle employee conflict before it even starts.
Redistribute Team Members
Managing conflict at work sometimes requires playing a game of chess. Diversify the team members working on a particular project so that the same employees aren’t always working together. Doing this might also give you insight into where allegiances may lie so you can get a better understanding of where conflict is likely to erupt.
This approach disrupts cliques at work by breaking up tight-knit groups and encouraging employees to collaborate with other colleagues they might not usually interact with. By redistributing teams, managers can ensure that all employees have equal opportunities to contribute, preventing the formation of exclusive workplace groups that can undermine morale.
But don’t stop there—managers should initiate and promote team engagement activities that foster connection and unity. Team-building exercises are essential for promoting cooperation, trust, and open communication. When employees from different backgrounds and departments work together in new settings, it helps break down barriers and encourages them to speak openly. This can help prevent the isolation of cliques at work, which often start rumors or create division within a team.
Effective team-building activities can also highlight the strengths of individuals who may have been overshadowed in their usual job roles. When employees are given a chance to shine in diverse scenarios, managers can identify potential leaders and foster a more inclusive environment.
Encourage Feedback
Actively encouraging feedback from your team is crucial in identifying and addressing the roots of favoritism and cliques at work. When employees know their input is valued and will be kept confidential, they’re more likely to speak up about issues affecting team dynamics.
This feedback can reveal hidden tensions or concerns that might otherwise go unnoticed, allowing managers to address potential employee conflict resolution needs before they escalate.
Additionally, fostering an environment where feedback is regularly sought helps build trust and transparency within the team, making employees feel more secure and valued in their roles and ultimately leading to a healthier and more inclusive workplace.
Foster Open Communication
Open communication is key to minimizing the negative impact of cliques at work. When employees feel comfortable voicing their concerns without fear of judgment, it reduces the power of exclusive group dynamics.
Encouraging transparency helps prevent inside jokes or secretive conversations that can make others feel intimidated and excluded. Leaders should actively promote open dialogue across all levels, ensuring that everyone, not just a select group, has a voice.
This approach helps dismantle cliques at work by fostering an inclusive environment where employees are less likely to form divisive groups and more likely to collaborate openly.
Set Clear Merit-Based Policies
To create a fair and inclusive workplace, managers must establish clear merit-based policies that reward employees based on their performance, skills, and contributions rather than personal relationships or biases. Failing to do so can expose a significant weakness of a leader, as it may lead to perceptions of favoritism and undermine team morale.
For example, when evaluating candidates for promotions or raises, use standardized criteria that focus on measurable achievements, such as project outcomes, leadership abilities, and team collaboration.
It’s crucial to ensure that these policies are applied consistently across the board. For instance, if other women in the workplace are consistently overlooked for promotions despite their qualifications and achievements, it may indicate a deeper issue of favoritism that needs addressing.
By setting and enforcing clear merit-based policies, you help prevent favoritism and ensure that all employees, regardless of gender or personal connections, have equal opportunities to succeed.
Give Your Team Skills
Whether it’s directly managing conflict at work or trying to avoid it by dissipating office politics, you can help arm your employees with the skills they need to manage uncomfortable interpersonal situations. Communication skills coaching may be necessary to introduce to your team so that tension and disputes can be handled effectively rather than getting out of hand quickly.
How Pollack Peacebuilding Systems Can Help
At Pollack Peacebuilding Systems, we specialize in crafting customized conflict resolution programs tailored to meet the unique needs of your organization. Whether you’re dealing with ongoing disputes or want to prevent issues from escalating, we design strategies that align with your company’s culture and goals. Our programs are built to foster a healthier, more productive work environment where conflicts are managed effectively.
Workplace Training Initiatives
Our workplace conflict resolution training initiatives equip your team with the skills needed to handle conflicts proactively. Through interactive workshops and real-world scenarios, we teach employees how to communicate better, resolve disagreements, and build stronger workplace relationships.
Leadership Development and Coaching
In addition, our leadership development and coaching services focus on empowering leaders to guide their teams through challenges. We work closely with your leadership team to develop the skills necessary to manage conflicts, set clear expectations, and create a culture of fairness and inclusion. By investing in leadership development, you ensure that your managers are prepared to handle conflicts in a way that benefits the entire organization.
Take the First Step Toward a Healthier Workplace Today
If managing conflict at work has become too personal and hard to manage, don’t go it alone. Get support from unbiased professionals who can use their outside perspective to re-introduce professional boundaries and expectations when it comes to interpersonal conflict. Contact Pollack Peacebuilding Systems today to get the right kind of resolution for your workplace.
