Competition: The Toxic in the Work Water

[Assumption, Blame, Comparison, Competition, Denial, Expertise, Living in the Past, Passive Aggressive, Technology]

The new realities of workplace competition:

• A new Raleigh, NC branch of The Container Store has 50-60 sales associate positions, 450+ have applied.
• A Tulsa, OK restaurant with just over 100 jobs received over 500 applications.
• A new Wal-Mart in Cleveland – over 6,000 applications for roughly 300 jobs.

It started me wondering about how that translates in the workplace where lay-off fears, limited raises, and reduced bonuses are making things a bit tense. In a study by the Economic Policy Institute, over 50% of employees feel like they are doing more work for the same or less money.

What little is left in the money pot is either going to cause camaraderie or conflict. A colleague of mine worked in a fortune 100 environment where nearly 50% of his function was laid off. In his situation, the combination of poorly communicated lay-off messaging and the company threatening future lay-offs led to mistrust and deepened competition. It got ugly.

“People would take opportunity to tear each other down in front of management, everything and everyone got isolated. It was just plain wise to keep to yourself and not share your strategies. I even started to question the motives and reasons for behaviors of my colleagues. The environment was toxic and things got really competitive.

Unfortunately, competition stays in the air even when things get better. When that same company started hiring for that same position again, the behavior did not cease. Once the competitiveness enters the workplace arena, it tends to stay.

As we get bombarded by messages – highly competitive job picture if you are seeking and a deeply competitive environment if you are employed…remember this: When the dust settles, people will remember you for the coalitions you built, not the competitors you tore down.