How to Spot a Toxic Workplace–Before You Take the Job

When you're thinking of taking a new job, you likely think about things like salary, benefits, the work schedule and commute time. And of course you'll be interested in the type of work you'll be doing, how well qualified you are to do it, and what opportunities for advancement there will be.

What you might not consider? Whether you’re about to walk into a toxic work environment. And  we don’t mean asbestos seeping through the walls, but a burnout culture, narcissistic colleagues or a boss who has something to prove. 

It probably won't be too hard to figure out if you're in that kind of workplace once you've been there a while. But how do you spot the signs before you take the job?

Three red flags to start with

According to a recent HBR article, there are three dead giveaways of a toxic workplace:

1. A bad interview process

This could include inflexible scheduling, poor or vague communication, asking for several interviews, pressuring you to decide immediately, or other forms of intimidation.

2. What current employees say (and don’t say)

If you’re doing a meet-and-greet and you’re met with open negativity, that’s an obvious red flag. But it’s more likely there’ll be vague or noncommittal answers and some uncomfortable body language.

3. High turnover

As well as asking why the person you’ll be replacing is moving on, you can check to see if the company frequently places ads for the same position. That’s a sure sign they’re struggling to retain staff. 

Other signs to look out for

As helpful as the three red flags are, most companies are pretty slick when it comes to hiring. It’s unlikely they’ll sit you in front of a hiring manager who’s just about to throw a stapler at you, or take you on a tour of the office while everyone is hiding under their desks. 

Luckily, there may be some other subtle signs that can give you clues about the company culture and whether it’s a place where you want to work.

Unreasonable expectations

Whether in the job ad, the interview, or other interactions you get the idea they want you to do the work of three people, with different job descriptions, and be excited about it. Often, they’ll state this casually, as if it would be normal to do two giant 30-hour projects every week. 

Do they see hyper-work as a good thing – “Do you thrive in a high-paced environment where you constantly feel challenged?”

Read between the lines and you’ll arrive at the truth – “we want to pile as much work on you as possible before you burn out and it turns out you’re not an inexhaustible work-producing robot after all.”

They’re vague about what's in it for you 

This is pretty common in job ads where they have 12 paragraphs showing the skills, qualifications and outputs they expect from you, without saying anything about what they offer in return. But if they’re still vague during the interview phase, you may have a problem.

Are they avoiding talking about pay, benefits, or even the schedule? Are they waiting until the fifth interview to address these specifics? Or maybe they’re overpromising on externals (pay, bonuses, prestige) rather than showcasing a gratifying culture where everyone can shine. 

They may even convey the idea that it’s a privilege to work there, and you should be honored they’d even consider you. In which case, expect to be treated like a replaceable drone.

They lack diversity of thought and opinion 

While many companies are doing well with initiatives to encourage diversity in age, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation and disability, you may need to dig a little deeper to find out if they have a genuinely strong inclusion strategy. 

Do you get the impression that they encourage different talents, opinions, work styles and personality types, for example? Or do they make statements about how everyone is expected to represent the company with identical demeanours and communication styles? Or value a certain type of networking, management style or team dynamic above all, to the exclusion of others?

If that’s the case, and your personal working style is different to what they prefer, then you may end up being a square peg in a round hole. Being asked to quash who you are is definitely a sign of a toxic workplace culture for you.

They foster competition over collaboration 

This could be stated explicitly or quietly implied. Explicitly, they focus on bonuses, winners and personal achievements. Implicitly, you may pick up on the tone of the interviewer, the style and speed of questions, or how many hoops they want you to jump through just to be considered.

Do you feel that there’s a wrong answer, even to personal opinion questions? Do you get the impression that the organization wants to divide and control employees rather than encouraging them to work together and utilize complementary talents?

Possible sources of information

Before you jump on board with a new company, it's crucial to peel back the curtain on its workplace culture. Here's where to go to spot a potential nightmare job before it's too late.

The company’s website

What impression do you get about the company culture from the messages and language on their website? Is it all how clients will get great work, in a fast time frame, at the cheapest prices? (Read overworked, underpaid employees or freelancers who aren’t given credit). 

Do they fail to say anything at all about what they have to offer people who work for them? Are any bios posted and, if so, do they focus on unique talents and a sense that these people have some work-life balance? Are they only about owners and executives, or do they include people from a wide range of roles?

Job sites, such as Glassdoor or Indeed

These sites may provide ratings of employers and comments by past employees. You likely will see the whole spectrum of comments from horrible to ideal, so look for overall trends, specific experiences and revealing wording. If the rating is three stars over all, that means there will be a couple of fives, but also some ones and twos. Look at those for tone, details and recurring patterns.

Your intuition

Don’t discount your gut feelings, especially if you’re experiencing some doubts that are hard to explain. While intuition shouldn't be your only source of information, it can be one more useful piece of the puzzle.

When you walk into the building, does something about the atmosphere feel off? Do you get a sense of tension radiating off of people? Do you feel like you’ve been holding your breath until you step out the door? 

If so, interview anxiety aside, that probably doesn’t bode well for a place you’ll be spending a lot of time at if you take the job. 

Final words

You may have to do a little detective work when evaluating a potential workplace to spot and avoid a toxic situation—but if you know what to look for, there are plenty of sources of clues.  Following the trails is worth the effort. Otherwise, you could end up in a situation where the toxic culture is slowly poisoning your happiness, and you are faced with the difficult task of leaving yet another job.