What does the no @sshole rule mean for volunteer involvement?
09:13, 29 December 2009
.. Posted in Volunteerism and Volunteer Management.. Link
A book that's been on my to-read list for a year now is Stanford Professor Robert Sutton's: The No Asshole Rule—Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t. His book is about paid employees, but I know that most people who have worked with volunteers also have experienced much of what he writes about. Have you ever been a part of an organization held hostage by a toxic volunteer, a person who seems to make it her or his goal to tear others down, get his or her way, and poison anything that he or she doesn't own or lead?
Sutton says the term "asshole" encompasses "bullying, interpersonal aggression, emotional abuse, abusive supervision, petty tyranny and incivility in the workplace." At the heart of his book is this: "Assholes have devastating cumulative effects partly because nasty interactions have a far bigger impact on our moods than positive interactions—five times the punch, according to recent research. … These findings help explain why demeaning acts are so devastating. It takes numerous encounters with positive people to offset the energy and happiness sapped by a single episode with one asshole." Sutton's book is about how terribly toxic, costly and counterproductive bad behavior in the workplace can be.
Sutton says in the foreword: "I was convinced to write The No Asshole Rule by the fear and despair that people expressed to me, the tricks they used to survive with dignity in asshole-infested places, the revenge stories that made me laugh out loud, and the other small wins that they celebrated against mean-spirited people. I also wrote The No Asshole Rule because there is so much evidence that civilized workplaces are not a naive dream, that they do exist, and that pervasive contempt can be erased and replaced with mutual respect" (and superior performance) "when a team or organization is managed right."
If you are, or have been, faced by a volunteer who acts as Sutton describes, you are probably loving what Sutton has to say. But here's a problem: from the reviews I've read, The No Asshole Rule tells you how to identify the jerks, but not really what to do about them. While most organizations probably love the sound of the rule, we see huge obstacles in implementing it.
Kris Dunn has written "Why Do Companies Keep Jerks Around?" (registration required), a commentary on why the ‘No Asshole Rule’ isn't enforceable. I've adapted Dunn's article for volunteer managers and boiled it down to just two bullets:
- Volunteer managers hate confrontation and conflict of any kind, and most will do anything to avoid it. Most volunteer managers will tolerate a toxic employee and let other volunteers walk or be bullied rather than confront that person.
- Sometimes the jerk is a long-time volunteer and, for all the bullying she or he brings, that volunteer also brings valuable expertise and resources. Some people -- or even just one in a senior leadership role -- may say the jerk is mission-critical and can’t be touched.
But consider this: what message are you sending to the other volunteers -- and the staff -- if you make the choice to live with the situation and refuse to deal with the jerks? How many great volunteers are you losing by enabling the jerk's behavior? You have to honestly answer those questions in deciding whether or not to keep the jerk around. And maybe, indeed, the bottom line is such that you have to keep the jerk and let good but-not-as-valuable volunteers go, at least for now.
My own advice, based on my own experience:
- The people falling under the spell of that second bullet assume that confronting the toxic behavior will drive the volunteer away, that his or her behavior cannot be modified. Don't assume jerks can’t adapt their behavior and improve if confronted in a dispassionate, well-documented way.
- If you have decided that, for now, the jerk has to be tolerated, have a plan for getting rid of the jerk within the next three months, the next six months, or the next 12 months (see next bullet for more on that). Never assume that the jerk will naturally evolve into a better volunteer or suddenly and happily move on.
- No volunteer is absolutely indispensable. Say it again: No volunteer is absolutely indispensable. All of your volunteers, jerks and prizes, are documenting their work for the time when they will no longer be a part of your organization, right? You are looking for backup volunteers for every mission-critical volunteer task, right? You have more than one person trained for every volunteer task, right? You have a recruitment plan ready to implement if any volunteer leaves, including the non-jerks you adore and want to assume will always be there, right?
- If as a volunteer manager you are uncomfortable making tough decisions, and aren't prepared to make the case for the tough decisions you may need to make, then let me be blunt: you are in the wrong business. Your volunteers deserve someone who is going to be there for them. If you can't be that person, maybe it's best you move on.
