Organisational Rumours
“I guess, no matter where I would go, the rumour would continue. It had spread like wildfire and everyone thinks I am the bad guy. She was very nice to me to my face and I did not believe others when they said that she’s double-faced. Now I can’t even work in another company without her calling people here to tell the big boss how terrible I am as a person and a worker. Big people may be well connected but what right do they have to destroy another person’s career over personal grudges. How can such a small lie escalate to bulldoze not only me, but also my marriage?”
You know someone who knows someone else, who knows your colleague and before long, your informal network is extensive enough; ‘six degrees of separation’, the theory that everything or everyone is six or fewer steps away. Communication is the social glue in any organisation, be it formal or informal. Middle managers rank informal networks as better sources of organisational information, than formal pathways. People have a tendency to share informal information with others with whom they come into contact, thus snowballing the impact it creates.
People may spread rumours in the organisation due to many reasons but mainly due to their own insecurities. Pic courtesy - Gettyimages
Rumours can race through the company because the information may be seen as interesting and ambiguous. The ambiguity is what leaves room for embellishment as it passes through word of mouth. In a blink of an eye, almost everyone in the organisation may have heard it, thus making an inaccurate message, now look factual; ‘it must be true because everyone knows it’. Hence now, even if at some point there was some truth to the rumour, the message has quickly become untrue. Technology has made it possible for rumours to spread at lightning speed through emails, Internet, blogs and even Youtube. The high-tech grapevine and ‘confession’ pages on Facebook (almost similar to cyber bulling or harassment) can be extremely harmful.
There are different types of rumours. The above example, which was adapted from a true incident, is a wedge driver; a rumour in which people intentionally say malicious things about a person with the intention of damaging the victim’s reputation. Pipe dreams expresses people’s wishes, say, a rumour going around the company that this year’s bonus will be much larger than usual. Even though they may echo the positive expectations of the people who are spreading the rumours, if it is not true, it will lead to disappointment. Bogie rumours carry people’s anxieties and fears and are most common during retrenchment and downsizing. This may lead to job insecurity and may drive even the high performers of the organisations to look for options outside the company. It might leave workers in a state of disorientation and uncertainty, thereby compromising their productivity and job satisfaction. Finally, Home-stretchers are rumours designed to reduce the ambivalence of a situation, whilst telling a story about something before it happens. Assume there has been talks going on about a possible merger in your company and everyone is waiting for a formal announcement to be made: In the absence of the specifics of the merger, rumours may spread to complete the puzzle. As people become anxious about not knowing the ultimatum, rumours of this nature are likely to emerge. People may spread rumours in the organisation due to many reasons but mainly due to their own insecurities. Some other reasons may include the feeling of being superior, for control and power, out of jealousy and a need for revenge, for attention, to belong to a group/to be liked by others and even out of boredom and needing some entertainment.So, how can one combat rumours? By saying ‘no comments’, we will only allow rumours to thrive on environments of uncertainty and ambiguity. Also, it is good to remember that taking a stand for integrity is different from being defensive; silence is not always golden but harsh confrontation with the culprit can drive the rumour to spread even further.Objectively evaluating the rumour and determining what gives credibility to it and taking steps to stop it, are important. People are likely to spread rumours that are believable and that hinge on the existence of suggestive evidence. If one has credible evidence to the contrary, one has to take a stand on the fact that it is not true, and communicate it while keeping it simple. Posting or announcing the rumour in a prominent way reduces its momentum as this affects the people who spread the rumours seeking social status and power in having inside information. If it is public, they will no longer be motivated to bad-mouth their target individuals. Explaining why the rumour exists, and who is being damaged by it and benefiting from it and finally creating a new honest truth about the situation, is also important.
Even though many might tell us that it is ultimately about how secure we are in ourselves, we know that this is an ideal mindset that we often fall short in achieving. This is worse, when we are compelled to take drastic actions such as getting a transfer or leaving a company. Things that affect what we think about ourselves and how others will think of us will no doubt create discomfort even temporarily. If we are innocent, but being judged by others on unfair and non-existing crimes, we need to find security in the facts that we know about ourselves. We cannot always please others and be liked by others; people who will know you truly, will know you well enough to stand by you.
Rumours cannot spread by itself. It gains power only when we give it the importance and fuel it from one corner to the other. It is not ‘cool’ to be a part of a gossip chain that can destroy a person’s reputation, career and personal life. It is in fact disastrous, because one day, the very same people who we choose to gang up with to slander a person, will do the same when the dice is thrown towards us.
(Rozaine is a Business Psychologist, consultant and a university lecturer based in Colombo. She can be contacted via email on rozaine@forte.lk).
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