Many leaders have good reason to be proud of the workplace cultures they have built in their companies.

But times change, people change, teams turn over, and new generations bring new values and aspirations to their jobs.

In this week’s show, Claudia and I look at the workplace culture itself.

Yes, most of the time we are talking up the importance of having an a workplace culture period. We preach the value of having an intentionally designed workplace culture instead of simply slipping into one without thinking about it.

When it comes to playing favorites, though, we want to look at the issue from the other end of the spectrum.

Are you aware of how and where your workplace culture is serving you well and where it is not?

 Are you holding onto a culture whose effectiveness in the past is dissuading you from reevaluating it in the present?

Do you have so much at stake personally that you’re having a difficult time thinking critically about what’s best for the future?

Workplace cultures change slowly. Could playing favorites here be sowing the seeds of future problems?

Listen in.

Just now joining the conversation? Catch up on the entire series here.

“The purchase order is on the computer, why do we still need to distribute four hard copies?”

“You have to get these two approvals before I can look at your request.”

Some policies and procedures served a specific and necessary purpose when they were first implemented, but they make absolutely no sense now.

The boss is hesitant to make any changes, because since those policies or procedures were put into place for a reason there will be some unforeseen disaster if they are no longer present.

Maybe an efficient streamlining initiative would result in less control for a key decision-maker which they don’t want to give up.

In this week’s show, Claudia and I look at the cost of playing favorites with certain policies and procedures.

Could you be holding on to methods and practices that no longer serve their intended purpose?

What might enforcing the status quo be costing you?

Listen in.

Just now joining the conversation? Catch up on the entire series here.

Every technology has its loyal fans. I’ve never worked on any computer but a Mac.

I believe my bias is based in fact. I want my employees doing their jobs not learning how to use their tools.

But what if I were spending a premium on computers because they were cool?

Some of us feel locked into our technology choices because of the magnitude of the initial investment. We let better solutions and technologies that come along pass us by because we can’t deal with the awkward reality that the world changed before we got our money’s worth.

In this week’s show, Claudia and I explore how we play favorites when it comes to the technologies we choose.

When does our loyalty to a brand exceed its merits in comparison to another?

Are we making the best leadership decisions on these huge investments if we’re playing favorites without even knowing it?

Listen in.

Just now joining the conversation? Catch up on the entire series here.

You think a certain employee performs amazingly. Everyone else seems to hate them. What gives?

You may be guilty of playing favorites, and that without even knowing it!

In this week’s show, Claudia and I take a look at what happens when we play favorites among our team members.

While rewarding excellence, performance and results is important, some times we favor certain people for their charisma, because we like them, or because we work well together.

Of course there’s no crime in enjoying working with one person more than another, but what about the unintended consequences to the morale of everyone else?

Once people form the perception that you are playing favorites, they will begin interpreting your every decision through that lens. And who can blame them?

It is difficult enough to hear criticism of one’s work when it’s completely warranted, but when we feel that someone else isn’t being held to the same standard, our willingness to improve can evaporate pretty quickly.

Could you inadvertently be playing favorites?

Listen in.

Just now joining the conversation? Catch up on the entire series here.

“Play favorites? Who, me?! Not a chance!”

Famous last words. How many leaders do you know who admit to playing favorites?

It’s like a secret shame. Except the only person the secret is fooling is the leader playing favorites, who remains blindly adamant that there is no favoritism in anything they do.

We launch a new podcast discussion series this week, “Playing Favorites.”

Leaders assume they make the best objective decisions possible. But certain patterns and tendencies give away that they might have slipped into playing favorites.

Playing favorites can erode trust, credibility and motivation.

Can you tell the difference?

Playing Favorites
Week #1: The Office “Romances” that Backfire
Week #2: Favoring Certain People
Week #3: Favoring Certain Technologies
Week #4: Favoring Certain Policies and Procedures
Week #5: Favoring Certain Workplace Cultures

Listen in.