by D. Warnaar

Created on: November 08, 2008   Last Updated: December 08, 2008

Creating and maintaining a positive corporate culture is becoming increasingly difficult in such hard economic times. Recent studies show that organizations which handle conflict poorly often experience higher levels of office gossip which can not only be detrimental to the corporate culture but also to each employee's job security. Dealing with conflict by openly and honestly communicating is one of the easiest and most effective ways to avoid office gossip traps.

With office gossip so prevalent, it is ironic that in many studies gossip ranks as employees' top annoyance and distraction in the workplace. On top of being annoying and distracting, office gossip can also lead more serious workplace issues such as:

-Lower employee morale/Poor employee attitudes

-Decreased levels of productivity

-Destruction of work relationships

-Career damage or, in extreme cases, even job loss

LEARN TO DEAL WITH CONFLICT THROUGH COMMUNICATION

Office gossip is usually either about other associates or about the organization itself. When organizations don't communicate well with their employees, the lack of communication often results in one or more employees making up information which perpetuates as gossip, rumors and "false" or half truths.

Executives and leaders of organizations need to be especially cognizant that employees are fearful of their job security in such an unstable economy. Leadership can combat this by keeping employees informed and implementing forums where employees can ask questions and dispel rumors brought about by office gossip. Addressing rumors head-on can substantially help decrease gossip and its damaging effects.

"The reality of our culture, very broadly speaking, is that we are typically conflict averse." says Kenneth Sole, a social psychologist and president of Sole & Associates, a Durham consulting firm. "Gossip is a symptom of an organization's lack of capacity to handle conflict well. The reason that is crucially important is because conflict that's resolved has huge benefits in creativity and productivity and loyalty" (Cohen, 2008, p. 14).

BE OPEN ABOUT ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE

Organizational change is often a catalyst for major office gossip. When organizations restructure, many employees begin to fear for their jobs and though their fears are often invalidated, the rumor mill can quickly begin to churn with murmurs of downsizing and layoffs. While employees may be not privy to certain sensitive information, do your best to communicate impending changes

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