Five signs you might be in a corporate cult

Organisational culture plays a role in firm performance and can help improve employee satisfaction, engagement and commitment. But sometimes corporations can behave more like a cult, a phenomenon that can lead to employee exploitation and harmful or unethical behaviour. Teresa Almeida lists five signs to help you tell the difference between an organisation with a strong culture and one that is a bit too “cultish”

Language diversity in the workplace can spur creativity and innovation

Our first language shapes how we think. Each one of us carries unique knowledge and different ways of dealing with complex problems. Bringing together people from diverse language backgrounds can spur creativity and innovation in the workplace. Teresa Almeida presents four actions to create a more inclusive work environment for people of all mother tongues

The face behind the mask: re-thinking authenticity at work

Bias towards a narrow selection of characteristics, that are supposedly professional, limit the number of people who can be truly authentic at work, resulting in code-switching, assimilation, and self-segregation. Odessa Hamilton and Teresa Almeida discuss why representation alone cannot address this. Organisations must foster an environment where difference is valued through reflective leadership and colleague reinforcement

Age diversity demands more than celebrating Martha Stewart on the cover of Sports Illustrated

At age 81, American TV personality Martha Stewart graced the cover of the Sports Illustrated magazine. As we live longer, these high-profile celebrity moments make us question our own aspirations regarding health, relationships and careers. Daniel Jolles and Teresa Almeida list ways in which leaders must focus their efforts to capitalise on the increased workplace age diversity that comes from these longer lives

Workplace friendships: the double-edged sword

Having friends at work can be good for employees and businesses alike. It fosters a sense of belonging, reduces turnover intention, and increases creativity and innovation, all good for performance. However, workplace friendships come with downsides too, including rumours, sexual harassment, nepotism, and favouritism. Odessa S Hamilton, Jasmine Virhia, and Teresa Almeida recommend seven practices to ensure that friendships are equitably beneficial among teams and do not develop into unfavourable outcomes

Return to work: a dictionary of behavioural biases

Firms are increasingly allowing their employees to decide if they work at home or in the office. But the return to work is fraught with many biases. Julia Bladinieres-Justo, Aleesha Bruce, Anisah Ramli, Nichaphat Surawattananon, Chanya Trakulmaykee, Teresa Almeida, Jasmine Virhia, and Grace Lordan have put together a dictionary of biases in blended work. This is the second dictionary of the series. In this edition, the authors have compiled a list of the most important biases they perceive as impacting the future of work if left unchecked

To improve performance and inclusion, firms must break silos between teams

Investment in diversity, equity and inclusion is critical to business performance and ability to compete, but the lack of meaningful change remains a barrier to progress. An often-overlooked pathway to change is to work inclusively across teams. Teresa Almeida and Grace Lordan write that by hyper-focusing on their teams, leaders can end up working in silos, and the benefits of inclusion efforts do not cascade across the organisation