Sharing ideas with a team member and later seeing that colleague getting appreciated for it is one of the most frustrating things that can happen at the workplace. Makehays are people who take advantage of an opportunity to present someone else’s ideas as their own. Naturally, they spark conspiracy and disturb the balance within the team. Most importantly, makehays contribute to creating a toxic work culture in many ways:
“The person who actually did the work experiences a profound sense of demotivation and perceives it as a great injustice. This creates feelings of vulnerability, as people do not receive the deserved recognition and fairness for their efforts,” opines Manish Majumdar, head-HR and EMS, Centum Electronics. The situation fosters an atmosphere of unfairness, injustice and division, engendering negative emotions and hampering team collaboration and motivation.
A significant contributing factor to these issues is the use of technology, especially in remote work setups. “With limited face-to-face interactions, team members may not truly know each other, hindering a deeper understanding of their colleagues’ capabilities and contributions. This lack of familiarity makes it difficult to assess and recognise their work accurately,” points out Mukul Chopra, CHRO, ConveGenius.
“The person who actually did the work experiences a profound sense of demotivation and perceives it as a great injustice. This creates feelings of vulnerability, as people do not receive the deserved recognition and fairness for their efforts”
Manish Majumdar, head-HR and EMS, Centum Electronics
If the management fails to recognise or give credit where due, it can lead to the loss of valuable employees. Mismanaged recognition can have a detrimental impact on employee morale and overall work culture.
When one person accomplishes the task and someone else takes credit for it, it gives the impression of favoritism on the part of the management or the organization. As a result, employees lose their trust in the management. “The erosion of trust leads to a belief that their contributions will not be valued. This makes them question the very purpose of investing any effort at all, let alone going the extra mile. Essentially, their willingness to put in any effort dissipates as a result of the prevailing mistrust,” points out Majumdar.
When there is mistrust, it impacts the willingness of employees to share ideas. Team members may hesitate to share their ideas openly, for fear of having their ideas stolen or not receiving credit for their contributions. This leads to a lack of open and constructive idea sharing, further hindering the team’s potential for innovation and growth.
When employees feel cheated and the organisation fails to address the issue, a harmful precedent is set. People begin to perceive such behaviour as acceptable, leading to a cascade of negative outcomes.
“This distinct shift in culture transforms the expectations of employees, making it necessary for them to be their own advocates and vocal about their own achievements,” observes Chopra.
He goes on to enunciate, “In such an environment, toxicity can thrive as employees feel undervalued when their efforts go unnoticed. Transparent communication within the team may suffer due to misunderstandings, lack of trust and a sense of unfairness.”
The lack of sharing stifles teamwork and hinders organisational progress. “Both interdepartmental and intradepartmental collaboration dwindle as people become hesitant to share information and ideas, fearing that their contributions will be stolen and credit will be taken by someone else,” asserts Majumdar.
“Under no circumstances should makehays be encouraged as they’re not only manipulative but poisonous. In fact, they should be shown the exit gate first even if they are handling any key assignments, because someone truly genuine can take on that same responsibility with better team work”
A Thiru, senior HR leader
Makehays can foster resentment and conflict among team members due to feelings of unfairness, lack of recognition and mistrust caused by credit-taking and not acknowledging others’ contributions. As a result, team cohesion may erode, leading to interpersonal tensions and communication breakdowns.
What can leadership do?
What strategies can be implemented to address and resolve conflicts? What role does leadership play in establishing a collaborative work culture?
A Thiru, senior HR leader, opines, “Under no circumstances should makehays be encouraged as they’re not only manipulative but poisonous. In fact, they should be shown the exit gate first even if they are handling any key assignments, because someone truly genuine can take on that same responsibility with better team work.”
“A toxic work culture can be addressed through simple practices such as getting to know team members, spending time on proper work allocation, and accurately evaluating their contributions. This approach can significantly reduce issues of unfair recognition and misjudgement,” advises Chopra. For instance, in one vertical, a manager’s successful track record of zero attrition was attributed to his emphasis on understanding his team members, allocating tasks according to their abilities and genuinely recognising their achievements.
Open and transparent communication channels should also be established, allowing team members to express their concerns and grievances. Additionally, companies can organise conflict resolution workshops or training sessions to enhance conflict-management skills among team members.
“Leadership plays a crucial role in setting the tone for a collaborative work culture. Hence, leaders should lead by example, demonstrating values such as fairness, integrity and teamwork,” suggests Majumdar. It’s essential to emphasise the organisation’s core values and ensure that behaviours align with these values.
Thiru recalls, “One of the makehays in a company left taking a few of his team members to another company. When he wanted to be re-hired, we selected him for a specific role but did not entertain his request to hire his old team members who had left with him. This sent out a warning signal to others”. The said makehay was re-hired at the same level and same salary as at the time of his departure. “Obviously, under the new professional environment he could survive only for a short period,” shares Thiru.
“With limited face-to-face interactions, team members may not truly know each other, hindering a deeper understanding of their colleagues’ capabilities and contributions. This lack of familiarity makes it difficult to assess and recognise their work accurately”
Mukul Chopra, CHRO, ConveGenius
Organisations can implement a robust performance evaluation and recognition system. “Through this system, team achievements can be celebrated and collaboration can be encouraged without explicit instructions from the organisation,” points out Chopra.
Thiru also agrees and asserts, “In fact, we started encouraging talents who passed on the credit of success to the team and shouldered the entire accountability on self in case of failure or under performance. Sharing learning from mistakes and appreciation for cognitive flexibility further accelarated the growth of the company.”
Majumdar concurs, “While honouring individual contributions is essential, giving equal recognition to collective achievements, cross-functional accomplishments, as well as departmental and organisational successes helps mitigate issues arising from individual credit-taking. By focusing on the ’how‘ of the achievement, in addition to the ’what’, well-meaning organisations can foster a more collaborative and inclusive work culture.” Using the analogy of a football team, he further explains, “The focus is not solely on one player’s goal-scoring ability, but on the team’s ability to win collectively. Appreciating individual contributions while celebrating team wins promotes a sense of unity and shared responsibility for outcomes.”
“Reward for performance, especially long-term incentives, should consider not only right behaviour and output, but more importantly, righteousness and impact,” asserts Thiru.