Bullying at work is a serious problem that harms individuals and organisations. It would be easy to think that the move to remote and hybrid working patterns has made bullying and conflict at work less of a problem, but unfortunately that's not the case.
For some teams and organisations, the move to hybrid working has created an environment where bullying can hide. Bullying is often difficult to detect and manage, and now that so many are working remotely, or in a hybrid environment, it could be happening unnoticed and unchecked. Conflict between team members can be more of a problem when everyone is under pressure and lacking clarity and cohesion they might have had while working toether in the same location. On top of this, managers might be relying on communication and people management skills that don't work at a distance.
It’s also made misunderstandings between managers and staff more likely because we’re relying on communication channels we might be less skilled at using effectively. This could cause situations where people feel bullied when that was not the manager’s intention.
And while there's been so much change and so many challenges to overcome, managers may have put off tackling poor performance because they didn't want to heap more pressure on people. As a result, performance issues that you might have nipped in the bud in previous times have been left too long and are causing problems.
