BY EMMANUEL ZVADA All organisations have the potential to become toxic. Experiencing a toxic work environment is more common than you think. As you share your story, you will be astounded to hear that almost everyone you know has gone through such horrific experiences. Toxic work environments can have long-term effects which can affect the way we view prospective employers or new office environments. What does “toxic work environment” mean? A toxic work environment is one where employees find it difficult to work or progress in their careers due to a negative atmosphere created by co-workers, supervisors, or company culture. A toxic workplace can be defined as any job where the work, atmosphere, people, or any combination of these things cause serious disruption to an employee’s life. Toxicity at the workplace can also create negative results, illness, high turnover, and even abusive behaviour among employees. A toxic workplace defines a situation where organisational problems demotivate employees, hence affecting performance and productivity. Here are some common toxic work environment characteristics and how they demotivate employees. Unclear goals and lack of transparency Goals make a company move forward. When everyone knows the company aims, as well as the smaller individual goals, employees will know how important is their contribution to the bigger  picture of the company which will make them productive and happy. Every workplace benefits from transparency and in that way employees will feel that their contribution is appreciated. A toxic workplace doesn’t have clear goals or may have forgotten about them a long time ago in pursuit of financial gain. The danger of this is that it leads employees to feel they are lost in their career path or they are stagnant and being underutilised. Bad bosses can create toxicity. Managers should avoid contributing to a toxic work environment. It is known that employees work hard when their bosses are great leaders with clear visions and enviable work ethics. When managers are insincere and seem not to know what they are doing, the workers will suffer. It is a fact that most employees leave organisations because of bad bosses. It’s also a fact that companies cannot be successful if they are managed by unskilled people. Communication is one-way in a toxic environment A key sign of a toxic work environment is when communication flows in one direction, from the high offices to the employees. Employees are afraid to ask for fear that they will be singled out for not understanding quickly. In a toxic environment, communication is never two-way. It is used as a tool to assert dominance. A healthy environment supports open, assertive communication. Proper communication is based on an understanding of previously mentioned roles, goals, attitudes, and beliefs. Knowing the roles and hierarchy of each person helps to achieve quick results. Decision making is top-down In a healthy work environment, decisions are made together, with input from all concerned parties. In order for an organis