The Hidden Impact of Leadership in Work Environments.

The Hidden Impact of Leadership in Work Environments. . . In recent weeks, I’ve encountered strong stories about the varying impacts of leadership on people’s lives—some visible, others unnoticed by the leaders themselves.

Consider the case of a woman in her late thirties, with two kids, who had been working for three years in the digital space at a well-known Australian organisation. She was part of a division known for its unhealthy and unsustainable boy's culture. Her team was composed of people in their late twenties, primarily men. No one had children.

They had a robust, pushed system of work, where commitments were made based on demand rather than capacity. The executive leadership would make commitments to stakeholders, set due dates based on fingers in the air, and pressure up downstream to “make it happen!”

Working late hours and weekends was a standard practice. Their ritual for compliance? Daily meetings with naming and shaming.

She often worked until midnight or started at 6 am to complete her tasks before the dreaded daily meetings, fearing public humiliation. People crying at the meetings was not a rare event.

That, of course, led to severe burnout, and she resigned to preserve whatever was left of her mental health (she had been taking increasing doses of antidepressant drugs over the last year since the new leadership took over).

Her boss's last words were, “I’m surprised you last this long. I’m unsure how you kept work going while growing a young family. To work here, you have to dedicate 100% of your life. And if you want to grow, 120%.”

The result? She has been out of her profession for the last year with post-traumatic stress. Even discussing a return to the digital field triggers her distress, physically manifesting the trauma she experienced.

And she is not alone.