7 essential keys to avoid bad atmosphere at work

Regardless of the sector of activity, a bad atmosphere at work inevitably has negative effects on both workers and the company. According to the Gollac report, it is a main psychosocial risk factor for employees. Among other things, it promotes an increase in absenteeism, turnover, as well as a loss of motivation and commitment. In addition, by undermining employee morale, the poor atmosphere at work has a direct impact on employee productivity.

This causes many consequences such as the departure of talent, the deterioration of the company’s reputation, the decline in turnover, etc. It is therefore essential to ensure that the right atmosphere is maintained within the work environment. Here are 6 essential keys that will allow you to improve relationships at work.

Promote communication

Communication has always been the pillar of human relations. Ipso facto, it is one of the essential keys to remedy the bad atmosphere at work. Indeed, tensions in the workplace most often result from a lack of communication. There is nothing worse than rumours, unspoken, misunderstandings, innuendos and low masses to destroy a company.

These various elements generate anger in those concerned, which not only destroys them, but also leads to a bad atmosphere at work. So, whether between employees or with superiors, it is important that each person feels free to express themselves, regardless of their position. The opinion of each employee must count.

In business, communication can be done through various channels. You can opt for physical exchanges such as meetings, brainstorming, interviews, etc. It is also possible to use technological tools such as:

• The newsletter,
• A trusted platform for employee reviews,
• Email,
• Social networks such as LinkedIn,
• Videoconferencing,
• The internal press release,
• Internal signage, etc.

But, the ideal is to alternate the two types of means of communication in order to cope with the bad atmosphere at work.

Ensuring effective communication

Communication is key to managing the bad atmosphere at work. However, it is not about communicating in any way. Communication must be effective. Each person is endowed with a sensitivity that conditions the way they express themself and the way they receive what is said. It can therefore happen that your words shock or offend one of your colleagues without you realizing it.

In return, the latter can give you a hurtful retort. They can also keep quiet and hold a grudge against you. Imbalances will arise in your relationships and will lead inexorably to a bad atmosphere at work. It is therefore essential to know how to formulate your words before expressing them and to take the time to understand the words of your interlocutor before reacting.

To avoid a bad atmosphere at work, the manager can also offer their teams training in non-violent communication. It is a four-step method of communication that helps to express oneself better. Each employee will be able to facilitate the reception of their message by exposing the situation, expressing their feelings and their need and then by making a request.

In addition, it is essential that information circulates well within the structure to avoid innuendo and misunderstanding.

Take employees’ opinions

Who better to talk about a situation than those who experience it? Requesting and responding to employee reviews about your company is therefore an excellent solution against the bad atmosphere at work. This makes it possible to know what causes this toxic work environment.

Employee reviews are also very important, as they serve to:

• Value employees and attract new talent;
• Strengthen employee engagement and loyalty;
• Analyze employee experience;
• Find a solution to unite all teams towards common objectives;
• Ensure well-being at work;
• Create events to improve team spirit;
• Improve your brand image and reputation, etc.

These various advantages show the importance of internal communication in the company and employer branding. They also contribute to the fight against bad atmosphere at work as well as to the increase of productivity and turnover.

You must then be accessible and attentive to your employees. You can organize polls, conduct individual surveys or organize meetings to get the opinion of each employee.

Create internal events that bring people together

According to a study by Malakoff Médéric, for 49% of employees, the quality of life at work (QWL) depends largely on the good atmosphere prevailing in the company. On the other hand, a bad atmosphere at work can have deleterious consequences such as increased turnover, absenteeism, burnout, apathy, etc. Therefore, it is important to use solutions that make it possible to weld a work team in a company in order to fight against this phenomenon.

You can organize events with colleagues in order to maintain the company culture or improve team cohesion. It can be a team building day, a restaurant outing or a company evening that will bring together all employees. Organizing an afterwork, seminar or birthday party is also an excellent alternative to restore a positive working climate within a company.

During these events outside the workplace, participants will have many extra-professional activities to do together. They will be able to play, chat and get to know each other in a more relaxed atmosphere.

After the first event, you will conduct an employee satisfaction survey to collect opinions, remarks and advice. These will allow you to better organize future events and succeed in your mission to avoid bad atmosphere at work.

Identifying negative people and abolishing harmful practices

A poor social climate in the workplace leads to a situation of suffering at work and perpetual stress. This leads to employee disengagement and consequently to the decline in productivity that threatens the sustainability of the company. So, bad atmosphere at work, what to do?

A solution to this problem is to identify negative people in order to put them out of harm’s way for the well-being of all employees and the financial health of the structure.

Called disruptors or atmosphere breakers at work, these individuals are present in all companies. Spotting them could be extremely difficult. To achieve this, the manager must be vigilant, patient and expert. They must detect harmful behaviors while keeping in mind that such attitudes can only come from unhealthy or manipulated people.

As soon as the manager identifies the mood breakers at work, they informs them that they have been unmasked and then schedules reframing sessions. They will then be able to defuse harmful practices. They must fight, for example, against backbiting in front of the coffee machine, the disclosure of erroneous information, mockery, etc.

Manage and resolve conflicts

Among the causes of bad atmosphere in the workplace, you also have unresolved conflicts between colleagues. Indeed, it can happen that despite all the precautions taken to prevent the effects of bad atmosphere at work, disruptive elements occur. In this case, the manager has the obligation to solve the problem as soon as possible to restore peace in the company.

To do this, they will have to organize individual interviews to question each of the parties about the conflict, their feelings, their opinions and their expectations. Thanks to the data collected during these meetings, they will be able to better understand the state of mind of their employees. This will allow them to find solutions to create the right atmosphere and restore good relations at work.

When an incident between employees is not resolved, it causes discomfort, unspoken words, vexations and misunderstandings that affect QWL (quality of life in a company). Conflict management and resolution is therefore an essential key to avoiding a bad atmosphere at work.

Choosing participative management

Participatory management is also one of the levers to avoid a bad agreement at work. It consists of involving all employees in the company’s decision-making. To do this, you can use the essential tools to federate a team in a company such as employee reviews, problem tree, collaborative work software, etc.

The involvement of employees allows them to flourish within a healthy professional environment. It also promotes their accountability. Thus, thanks to this empowerment, teams can establish and implement an action plan to solve certain problems such as the bad atmosphere at work.

In addition to conviviality and responsibility, participative management gives employees the opportunity to define the group’s values by mutual agreement. They will determine together the rules to follow to maintain the good atmosphere within the structure and everyone will strive to apply them. As a result, there will be less tension and conflict.