They are inherent in companies with bad management and a toxic culture, but see to it that they do not bring trouble to you personally
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You heard her name while you were interviewing for this job. When you started, the boss mentioned her several times, then the colleague who introduced you to the tasks. You were left with the impression that Vera Staroselska is a luminary from whom you should draw plenty of experience.
And she turned out to be an employee with a not very important role in the team, generally a mediocre professional, slogging through her work, and a bit of a gossip, at least according to you. But with the status of a “sacred cow”, which is either good or nothing.
It’s undeserved, but you also started to comply so as not to cause trouble. Because you very quickly noticed that Vera deftly takes advantage of her sacred status and severely punishes those who do not behave like pilgrims.
In general, it will benefit your career to understand who and why they reach such a position. And by revealing the secret of Staroselska in particular, you will be much more aware of what team and company you are in.
“Sacred cows” are employees who for some reason are so secretive that they are considered untouchable. Whatever they do or don’t do, they are still forgiven by the boss. Because they are aware of this, they show off in front of colleagues or even act like superiors.
According to HR professionals, the existence of sacred cows is a toxic corporate culture. Very often they play a negative role in the atmosphere in the team, and sometimes they directly contribute to failures, because they influence the making of bad decisions or do not do their work well because they have forgotten themselves. Their loyal “devotees” ignore these issues and defend them by applying a double standard.
Ima various reasonsdue to which someone acquires such a status.
It may be the so-called sociometric star – because of the position or because of communication skills, a large number of connections between team members and with other teams pass through it, abundant information. A typical example is the boss’s secretary/assistant.
It could be a sacred cow a natural leaderwho has influence not by virtue of his office, but by his qualities. Sometimes, however, they are not at all positive – the person is a skilled manipulator.
The sociometric star should be taken into account, because its key position probably matters for your work as well. She can make it easy or hard for you with her contacts and information. It’s annoying when she tries to take advantage of her status, but make sure it’s not at your expense and hope the boss lands her if she overdoes it.
A natural leader also deserves natural respect when he owes his status to positive qualities. You can learn a lot from him. But try to recognize the manipulator and not let yourself be influenced. He will probably stop being untouchable at some point because the boss will feel it too.
According to experts, there are more common types.
“Sacred cows most often are three types: they’ve been with the company forever, they’ve played a significant role in an important success, they’re close friends or family members of someone high up in the hierarchy,” says management consultant David M. Taffet.
There’s something endearing about the veteranhe is the living history of the company. Bosses feel they owe him respect for his long years of service. However, he should not be a sacred cow if he cannot or does not want to perform his duties at the required level. Especially if he forgot himself and took advantage of his situation. Then the boss’s loyalty to him becomes poison to everyone else.
This person needs to be put in place, because otherwise a fundamental principle is distorted and employees are not evaluated according to their contribution. Not according to the historical, as long as they are not yet the museum.
The same goes for the sacred cow, once contributed to great success. When someone rests on old laurels and does not contribute enough in the present, it creates a sense of injustice shown by the bosses to the rest of their subordinates. Work has to be done every day, and usually when someone doesn’t do it, it puts a burden on others. So tolerance towards it harms them quite directly.
There is no doubt that all this demotivates the team.
The sense of injustice is strongest in the third type of sacred cows mentioned by Tafet. When bosses favor their friends or family membersdestroy the very foundations of the company and drag it into drama.
In fact, this is a very common case, and it is the favorites who most often allow themselves to benefit from their inviolable status, and the rest of the employees are forced not only to tolerate without grumbling, but also to show hypocritical respect, because they are afraid that the person close to the boss will caused trouble.
With the first and second type of Taffet sacred cows, be careful, treat them collegially, do not openly deny their merits, see if and what you can take from their experience. Try not to get into conflict, although they probably can’t do much harm to you – there’s a touch of condescension in tolerating them.
The third type should in no case be neglected as a factor that brings potential problems if he resents you. He is very close to the boss and can form his opinion about you.
This sacred cow try to get it right. It is possible that there are qualities, skills, experience for which you can show respect and from which you can “buy” what is useful for you. There’s no need to be pretentious, but be careful not to show that you’re annoyed by his status. For him, this will be a signal that he should belittle you in front of the boss.
And hope that one day there will be zero tolerance for “untouchables”. It is more than likely because they are a sign of a poorly managed organization and the consequence is usually failure for the team or company.
Taffet says he’s helped several companies get dragged down by identifying the real roots of their problem: sacred cows fueled by toxic loyalty. He advises managers to examine the interpersonal dynamics and behavior of employees to discover those who are favored through sacred status.
“Break the bonds of toxic loyalty, eliminate sacred cows, then implement new policies and procedures that promote accountability, transparency, open communication and feedback. Put an emphasis on recognizing and rewarding the true contributions of employees. Then the unsung will come to the fore heroes,” recommends the management consultant.
—— Identify the boss’s “right hand”.
While there shouldn’t be any sacred cows, in fact almost every team does. Even if the boss is aware of good management practices, nothing human is foreign to him – he chooses as his “right hand” a subordinate whom he thinks he can trust. He tends to forgive him, at least until he makes a big splash or starts abusing his proximity to the manager.
This guy enjoys a special status, and he probably didn’t get it by accident, so be sure to check him out.
If you judge that he is a specialist with qualities, efficiency, ideas, start watching him closely. Apart from a purely professional plan, you have to use him as an example of another important thing – how he does so that his achievements do not go unnoticed, unappreciated and unrewarded by the boss. The art of proper self-promotion is extremely important. And he’s obviously doing great. It will benefit you to stay in close contact with him to learn as much as possible.
Yes, it will also be useful for you to try to make a positive impression on him and count on the fact that flattering information about you will reach the boss.
In “The Right Man” you can read more:
In a job interview, don’t brag about your accomplishments. Defeat fears
5 Signs of Excess Team Drama That Eats Productivity, Nerves, and Success
A graceful exit is always more forward-thinking than a loud slamming of the door
What is a functional psychopath and how to deal with one as a colleague
12 signs that you are destined for success
Too smart for high office? It happens often
How to behave and be successful with a boss manager and how with a boss leader
More luxurious than the boss and colleagues – a bad choice
5 techniques to increase productivity and success at work
How you don’t screw up, but inform about your potential and achieve success
Techniques to tolerate a fellow complexer