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The Impact of Workplace Negativity

July 29, 2002

"U.S. companies lose about $3 billion a year to the effects of negativity, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  When negativity affects productivity or profitability, your company has a serious problem.

Whether the cause of the negativity is internal (the personality and communication style of the individual), external (inherent in the organizational culture), or a combination of the two, the results can be devastating.  The effects of negativity are measurable and can lead to these outcomes:

* Increased customer complaints
* Increased error rates and a lessening of work quality
* Increased turnover
* Increased absences and lateness
* Increased personality conflicts
* Loss of morale and motivation
* Loss of loyalty to the organization
* Loss of creativity and innovation
* Loss of a competitive spirit (Topchik, 2001, p. 5)."

Reference:  Topchik, G.S. (2001).  Managing workplace negativity.  New York:  AMACOM.

What kind of impact is negativity making in your workplace?

Managing Workplace Negativity is available on loan from the Ohio State University Leadership Center.  A complete listing of all the Leadership Center's resources is available on our website http://leadershipcenter.osu.edu/

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Created: 2008-12-13, Updated: 2009-01-06