Life at the Sharp End

When workplace misconduct allegations are made, it often falls to an investigator to conduct a fair, impartial and independent process to establish what’s happened.

The way an investigation is conducted is critical - not just for the parties involved, but for the wider trust and confidence that people have in an organisational culture that says it’s safe to come forward if you’ve been mistreated.

HR practitioners, Professional Standards Units, Complaints teams and the investigators themselves are at the front-line of integrity and confidence in the process.

When allegations are made against senior executives — the people in charge who you might report to, and who pay your salary — your integrity and the potential for unethical interference comes into particularly sharp focus.

In today’s episode, Chiedza Nziramasanga shares her experiences of Life at the Sharp End of managing misconduct investigations, as both an internal and external investigator.

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Scapegoating is an equal opportunity form of harmful workplace behaviour, because anyone can find themselves being made the workplace scapegoat. A phenomenon associated with workplace bullying, scapegoating takes place at a systemic level - described by Dr Nathalie Marthinek as akin to an “organisation’s immune response” to challenge, questioning and unwanted cultural change.

Nathalie writes extensively about workplace power dynamics and she’s an expert on how unhealthy behaviours like scapegoating, narcissism, exclusion and female-on-female aggression can infect a workplace culture.

In this episode, Nathalie talks about Life at the Sharp End for people who’ve found themselves subjected to the scapegoating playbook — from the targets harmed by this unpleasant and unkind behaviour, to the bystanders, HR practitioners and investigators swept along as the enablers of harm against the person targeted as the scapegoat.

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Tempus Fugit meaning "Time flees". More time than I’d intended has passed since the end of Season One of Life at the Sharp End and that great philosopher, Freddie Mercury, told us that “Time waits for nobody.”

Life at the Sharp End set out to help people who want to be a part of safe, respectful and high-performing workplace cultures.

Whether you’re new to the podcast or a long-time listener, let’s take some time together to reflect on some lessons we've learnt so far for leadership and workplace culture, and look forward to what’s still to come on Life at the Sharp End.

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Research studies have long established that workplace incivility, bullying and harassment is a traumatic experience for people affected by this unacceptable behaviour. It's self-evident that – at the extreme end of this continuum – any form of sexual harm is particularly traumatising.

But to what extent does the way organisations respond to these kind of incidents actually exacerbate the harm caused to people who’ve already been traumatised by unacceptable workplace behaviour?

'Trauma-informed' is a phrase that’s increasingly being used, but what does this mean in terms of practical steps that leaders, managers, Professional Standards Units, HR, lawyers and colleagues supporting one another need to take?

In this episode, Tanya talks about Life at the Sharp End of training people and organisations to become trauma informed, and the practical steps that we can all take to support people around us when they are affected by unacceptable workplace behaviour.

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A toxic culture is one result of workplace behaviour that includes incivility, bullying, harassment and a host of other unacceptable conduct. What action can leaders take to address this behaviour, other than following formal complaint processes and HR disciplinary investigations?

Dr Laura Crawshaw is a researcher and practitioner who's spent her career looking into this behaviour, which she summarises with one simple word - “abrasive.”

Are abrasive leaders just difficult people who need to be identified and removed from the workplace, or can they be persuaded to change their behaviour?

Do they even understand what their behaviour is like and the harm it is causing to others?

Dr Crawshaw is known as the “Boss Whisperer” coaching leaders in how to prevent - and address - the destructive impact of abrasive behaviour occurring in their organisations.

If you’re a people leader who needs to deal with an abrasive individual that reports to you — or you’re someone working for an abrasive boss who just ‘rubs everyone up the wrong way’ —this episode provides important insights and practical techniques that’ll help you take action to intervene and turn the situation around.

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The role of bystanders in workplace incivility, bullying and harassment incidents is significant and their behaviour can influence the course of events.

What do you do when you see something that’s just not right happening to someone nearby? Do you stand up and say something, or do you stand back and watch? What role does bystander behaviour play in establishing a workplace culture?

Graham Goulden is a former police officer who’s combined his career experience in crime and violence prevention with his interest in the role bystanders play in changing the behaviour of others. Graham’s developed his own programme to help people understand how peer intervention can be used as a vital tool in preventing - or addressing - a toxic workplace culture.

In this episode, we hear from Graham about his experience of Life at the Sharp End of creating positive cultural change through the behaviour of bystanders.

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Charlotte Hails heads the Public Sector Vertical Strategy for Virgin Media O2 Business, working with customers in UK policing, the Home Office, Health and Local Government. She's an ambitious woman in leadership, who began her career in policing rising to become a Detective Chief Inspector leading people in counter-terrorism, safeguarding and public protection.

But Charlotte’s experiences in policing also reflect the darker side of a workplace culture that women in uniformed services still find themselves having to deal with today. The last few years have highlighted problems of sexual harassment, bullying and misogyny towards women in emergency and armed services across the world.

In this episode, Charlotte reflects on her own experiences in policing, the progress that UK policing is making and the contrast between positive and negative experiences in policing and her subsequent career in the private sector.

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Research studies have shown that bullying and harassment have serious medical consequences for people’s physical and psychological health and wellbeing.

But what actually happens to the brain of people targeted by those who engage in this kind of unnecessary, unpleasant and unkind behaviour? Can people who’ve been targeted by bullies learn to recover their confidence and self-esteem, after suffering the harm caused by the behaviour they’ve been subjected to?

Dr. Jennifer Fraser has applied her research mindset to investigate and understand the neuroscience behind bullying, and what it does to the human brain.

Her book, “The Bullied Brain” explores the physical and emotional damage the brain of a bullying victim suffers, and looks into how the brain’s mechanisms for learning and recovery provide hope for the future.

In this episode, you’ll hear about life at the sharp end of bullying neuroscience, as Jen Fraser discusses “The Bullied Brain” - and she gives a preview into her new book (due out later in 2025), “The Gaslit Brain”

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Mark Bouchard has been in law enforcement since 2007 and has a Master’s degree in leadership, studying culture and mental health in policing. He’s the author of “Setting my sights on stigma: thoughts from an injured mind” - a candid and personal exploration of his own mental health journey and PTSD diagnosis.

In this episode, Mark talks openly about some of the critical incidents he’s been involved in as a police officer, and the impact these can have on the mental health and wellbeing of front-line first-responders in the emergency services.

We discuss leadership, and Mark gives practical examples of how leaders can create psychological safety and how we can all encourage and support people to be open about seeking support for their mental health.

What is the role of leadership in setting the culture for a workplace, and what’s actually down to you - as an individual, and in your own teams - when it comes to creating culture, and supporting the people around you, when they need to talk about their mental health?

This episode contains mentions of operational police call-outs, PTSD and suicide. If you think this episode might affect you in any way, you can find links to support resources in the show notes.

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The British Columbia Firefighter Resiliency Program is an innovative partnership that provides practical mental health support to Canadian firefighters.

Steve Farina is Executive Vice President of the British Columbia Professional Firefighters Association and he’s played an instrumental role in the program and its success in supporting firefighter mental health.

Steve’s extensive career, from volunteer and career firefighter to Captain, and a union executive, provides a fascinating perspective on the extent cultural changes he’s seen (and those still needed) in Fire and Rescue services.

In this episode, Steve discusses what leaders in Fire and Rescue can do to create a respectful culture that mentors and supports their crews. He reflects on how leaders should be accountable for their behaviour; take ownership of their actions; and on the role that unions can play in working constructively with Fire Services to achieve common goals.

The BC Firefighter Resiliency Program is one excellent example of how constructive engagement has produced a result that has, literally, saved lives.

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