It's Trendy to be Nice at Work

If you can't say something nice don't say anything at all. Most people heard this from somebody as a kid. Today it is advice being given to managers and others at work. Emphasis on being nice to subordinates and colleagues is a trend in the workplace. Not that being mean is necessarily ever a good idea. The great resignation and other attempts to get people back in the office have contributed to this focus of making the workplace a more pleasant place to be. Recent research says there are connections between niceness and effective leadership. Agreeableness, one of the Big Five personality traits has been linked to ethical behavior, workplace trust and psychological safety, among other beneficial things. These connections have shown to improve a firm's performance. Another study examined the relationship between chief executives' personalities and their organizations' cultures. Agreeable bosses were associated with cultures that were more collaborative and innovative. Research in the late 1990s did not find evidence of a strong connection between agreeableness and effective leadership. This recent change may reflect how organizations have evolved. Today, teams matter more, along with the social skills that promote cooperation. This trend towards an emphasis on niceness may also reflect increased instability in the outside world. Agreeableness improves outcomes when levels of uncertainty about a task exist, and there is a need to work together. The cliché "nice guys finish last" hopefully is over. This is good news for women in the managerial ranks who have suffered from perceptions of lower competence if they display niceness. Agreeableness is not the only attribute that matters for managers. A pleasant but highly irrational boss may grapple with demanding problems. The importance of how nice the boss is varies with employees. Some subordinates will tolerate a mean boss for more money. Stressful situations for employees can sometimes require empathy of a manager and the organization. Other situations, not so much. People who are seen as being less agreeable are less trusted, more competitive and more confrontational. While these traits may not work in some situations there are times where they could be an advantage According to Becky Abraham, Assistant Professor of Management at Tiffin University, "Working for a leader who is a 'yes' person can be frustrating, especially for an employee who thrives on being challenged. How do you have a constructive conversation if the leader or boss is too nice and agreeable?" Changing economic conditions can affect the types of bosses who lead firms. Agreeable leaders have been found to be slower to make changes, especially implementing layoffs in economic difficult times. During periods of intensifying competition "nicer" bosses were more likely to be replaced by less caring types. Even in these cases there is an expectation of a basic level of decency, civility and courtesy to which everyone is entitled. One of the ways to show niceness at work is to look for the good things that people do and comment on those instead of their errors. Not everyone agrees that a nice work place is good. Too much niceness can interfere with clear communication and confrontation when they are needed. One of the biggest ways to destroy psychological safety is through a culture of niceness, because nobody really knows what anyone actually thinks. Being tactful at pointing out a mistake could be equal to a nice manager, but also one who sees value in their employees. "A boss who takes the time to have conversations and helps an employee learn from mistakes is extremely valuable" Abraham added. Dr. Perry Haan is Professor of Marketing at Tiffin University. He can be reached at haanpc@tiffin.edu.