Impact of Toxic Leadership on Architectural Projects and Team Dynamics Essay

Introduction

Success in architectural work depends on a multi-disciplinary approach where every section performs its functions effectively. Leadership skills are fundamental to ensure that the different teams communicate and work effectively with each other. Positive leadership must always be sought because it improves communication, enhances client satisfaction, and leverages team dynamics for success. On the other hand, toxic behaviors in leadership hinder the growth and success of organizations and must be addressed. Failure to eliminate toxic behaviors leads to poor communication and an unhealthy work environment.

Toxic Leadership Behaviors

Lack of Support and Recognition

The toxic behavior of not supporting and recognizing workers leads to demoralization and lowers work morale. Research by Milosevic et al. (2020) inferred that when junior employees are not appreciated, their morale deteriorates. A senior architect in a construction firm does not support his juniors and leaves them to work with minimal support. The junior architect works without support, and the senior architect takes all credit when he succeeds. As a result, the junior architect feels unappreciated and may need to be more creative since he is not recognized.

Setting Unrealistic Expectations

Unrealistic expectations emerge when an organization leader assigns work beyond the employees’ capability and timelines for success. López-Cabarcos et al. (2022) contend that unrealistic expectations and deadlines pressurize employees and lead to poor quality. A principal architect signed a contract with a multi-billion-dollar company and promised to deliver a complex project quickly. Consequently, he had to set very tight deadlines for the junior staff, and since they were under immense pressure, they delivered a poor-quality project.

Poor Communication

Poor communication is toxic in architecture because ideas and expectations are not communicated effectively and transparently. When there is a lack of communication and transparency, the organization is bound to face confusion, misunderstanding, and a lack of collaboration. Research by Kılıç & Günsel (2019) postulated that toxic behavior leads to poor performance and a general decline in profitability.

A project manager in a construction firm received updates on an ongoing project which required some adjustments. The manager did not convey the information on time, and the team members continued the planned work. When the client went for a site visit, he was disappointed and wanted the entire project restructured according to the earlier adjustments.

Influence of the Toxic Leadership Behavior on Leadership Effectiveness and Organization Culture

Poor communication influences leadership effectiveness due to confusion and delays. When a leader does not share the expectations, the members will not understand their roles. For example, a lead architect in construction work needs to communicate critical information shared by the client on the project schedule. Since they were unaware, they delivered poor work than expected.

Organizations that share information collaborate and enhance team spirit as the culture. Kılıç & Günsel (2019) underscore the impacts of poor communication by stating that it lowers performance since they will feel unappreciated. For example, a project manager fails to give feedback on the performance of team members. Consequently, they feel unappreciated, and their productivity declines.

Setting unrealistic expectations not only affects the effectiveness of leadership but also negatively affects the organization’s culture due to immense pressure. For example, a senior architect assigns a complex project and sets unrealistic targets for the year. The employees need to achieve a work-life balance, and their effectiveness is jeopardized in the process. An example is when a project manager puts his employees through excess stress and pressure. As a result, the culture of quality work in the organization was replaced with low-quality work because of constant stress.

When a leader needs to support and recognize the workers for their efforts, the organization needs more effective leadership. When there is no support, there is a disconnection between the organization’s leaders and employees, as argued by Milosevic et al. (2020). For example, a lead architect needs to recognize a junior architect for the performance achieved. As a result, the junior architect stopped being innovative because he was not acknowledged, and effectiveness suffered in the leadership.

The culture of enthusiasm and hard work in an organization is promoted when the employees are empowered to work, and their efforts are recognized. Employees suffer demotivation when they are not credited for work done. For example, an architect needs to recognize the juniors when they perform well. In the subsequent assignments, they needed to be more motivated because they believed their efforts did not matter.

Ethical Consequence of Toxic Leadership Behaviors

Ethical decisions are paramount in managing projects, and transparent communication is critical. Poor communication leads to ethical dilemmas as the workers cannot make informed decisions when crucial information is held from them. An architect in a project should have explained the conflict of interest with the client when undertaking a project. As a result of people experiencing poverty, the architect bought better-quality materials that his farm supplied.

Another example is when a project manager needs to communicate safety concerns. As a result, adequate safety training was not conducted, jeopardizing workers’ safety.

Setting unrealistic expectations creates ethical dilemmas regarding the methods to be used. For example, workers on a farm under pressure may opt to use dubious methods such as using substandard materials to complete the work on time. The second example is a project that was to be completed quickly. As a result of the unrealistic deadlines, the team had to skip the environmental assessment, which led to the delivery of substandard work.

Failure to support team members in a project setting may demoralize the workers and lower their psychological work morale. Demoralized employees cannot uphold ethical concerns in the project management realm (Kılıç & Günsel, 2019). A team member in a project scenario identified a design flaw and raised it to the lead architect. However, the warning was ignored. Such a member is likely to abscond from communicating any flaw in the future.

The second example is when the lead architect did not applaud the efforts of junior architects and engineers who tried to improve sustainability practices. Consequently, they felt demoralized and stopped working hard on sustainable practices.

Recommended Actions to Prevent Toxic Behaviors

Toxic leadership behaviors affect leadership effectiveness and jeopardize productivity. Continuous leadership training and development are crucial to addressing all toxic behaviors. Milosevic et al. (2020) claimed that promoting a culture of open communication and feedback enhances the seamless flow of work. Encouraging peer support and mentorship is an action that is likely to overcome toxic behavior and improve the workflow.

Preventing Negative Consequences of the Toxic Leadership Behaviors

Promoting a culture of open communication and feedback eliminates all forms of poor communication that jeopardize a team’s effectiveness. López-Cabarcos et al. (2022) argued that developing feedback channels helps eliminate the impacts of poor communication. For example, a culture of open communication was introduced at the construction site, and as a result, information was shared effectively, and confusion ended.

Lack of support and training can be eliminated by constant training when leaders are trained on the benefits of supporting juniors, giving them the required support, and offering recognition. A chief architect underwent training on promoting human development and learned about improving work ethic. As a result of the training, the chief architect supported the juniors and applauded them for their hard work. Consequently, the junior architect felt more appreciated and became more innovative.

Setting unrealistic goals is a toxic behavior that jeopardizes the organization’s performance. When leaders set unrealistic targets, people will likely be overwhelmed with work, which may have negative consequences. Peer mentorship and support are vital in ensuring that workers are assisted in meeting the targets. For example, a project manager was stressed because of the deadline of a complex project; he opted to support the workers and incorporate their feedback into the operation standards.

Role of the Actions in Promoting Leadership Effectiveness

Improving Leadership Effectiveness

Constant training is a meaningful action that ensures managers and other leaders learn about emerging issues in the management realm. Training on concepts such as employee motivation and practicing them makes leaders more effective. Further, when leaders are able to communicate effectively, they can pass instructions to workers and, hence, lead effectively. Generally, the action items of training and embracing culture make leaders more effective as they become able to motivate, develop, and innovate employees.

Improving Organizational Culture

The action items help in the formulation of an organizational culture that will be productive. Embracing a culture of feedback and open communication makes it easier for the team members to recognize all flaws in the project design and address them effectively. According to Kılıç & Günsel (2019), toxic leadership behaviors develop negative feelings which affect performance. Since the actions eliminate negative feelings, they build a culture of trust where there will be seamless communication and the exchange of ideas.

Role of Power and Influence in Achieving Organizational Goals

Positive Leadership Behavior and Organizational Success

Success is attained when the leaders and team members interact effectively and work together. Positive leadership behaviors enhance success by creating a positive relationship between the team members and their leader. The prerequisites for success in an organization are motivation, inspiration, building trust and loyalty, incorporating feedback and employee satisfaction, and encouraging innovation and a positive culture towards work. López-Cabarcos et al. (2022) reiterated that positive leadership behavior leads to a rich organizational culture since it sets the pace for motivation. Positive behavior effectively uses power and influence to align employee activities to organizational goals and empower them to achieve them.

Toxic Leadership Behavior and Organizational Success

Toxic leadership behaviors inhibit the organization’s ability to achieve its goals because they widen the gap between the leaders and the workers. Poor communication, setting unrealistic targets, and failure to support workers are examples of toxic leadership behaviors because they jeopardize success. Research by Milosevic et al. (2020) posits that toxic behaviors must be eliminated for success to be attained. Success can only be achieved when positive relationships between leaders and team members exist. Since the toxic behavior destroys the relationship, it hinders the organization from achieving its goals.

Conclusion

Leadership is essential in all industries as it helps organize and ensure that tasks are performed within the required timelines. Toxic behaviors like poor communication and lack of recognition and support jeopardize organizational success. Toxic leadership behavior generally inhibits success, while positive behavior by the leaders increases cooperation, making the organization perform better. It is, therefore, the role of the leadership to coordinate training to ensure that positive leadership behaviors are embraced.

References

Kılıç, M., & Günsel, A. (2019). The dark side of the leadership: The effects of toxic leaders on employees. European Journal of Social Sciences, 2(2), 51-56. Web.

López-Cabarcos, M. Á., Vázquez-Rodríguez, P., & QuinoA-Pineiro, L. M. (2022). An approach to employees’ job performance through work environmental variables and leadership behaviors. Journal of Business Research, 140, 361-369. Web.

Milosevic, I., Maric, S., & Lončar, D. (2020). Defeating the toxic boss: The nature of toxic leadership and the role of followers. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 27(2), 117-137. Web.