Combat Rumours at Work

Firstly let me define more clearly what I mean by rumours. Rumours are stories that may or may not have elements of truth to them. They can develop from somebody’s projected ideas, or future scenarios, or they can be closely linked to truth with a slight twist.

Some rumours can be loosely based on the truth, and it is those bits of truth incorporated into the rumour that make them more believable.

Conspiracies in my opinion are rumours with elements of truth, that gain traction amongst groups of people.

Let’s return to the ‘office rumour mill’ as it is often known. In the office the collaboration of personalities and the interaction between them is fascinating to observe. It is in this melting pot of past experiences wrapped within the human psyche of different people, that rumours can germinate and grow.

Just like the broken telephone game, the story becomes more and more embellished as it circulates.

Rumours can be devastating to morale and general well being of employees or project teams, so it is in the interests of the leadership in any office environment to deal with the rumour mill.

Having worked in large multinational corporations for over twenty years I have observed how to handle the rumour mill and how not to handle the rumour mill.

What not to do

When you first become aware of a rumour doing the rounds, you should never do nothing. Letting the rumour circulate is devastating, it is like a cancer it will grow and develop new tumour sites, as time passes.

Do not start another rumour to quash the initial rumour. This too will take on a life of it’s own and you may even end up with division in the company, with some people believing the first rumour and others aligned to the second rumour, so this strategy does not work either.

In my experience after having worked for CEO’s that ignore rumours and those that take them head on, the best method is what the best leader I worked for did.

I worked at a large multinational pharmaceutical company at the time, and a rumour started about an employee in our office.

The CEO was quick to act.

He met privately with the employee about what he had heard, and it was a rather sensitive matter, so he was very diplomatic about it.

Once he had heard first hand from the person in question, he advised them to take leave for a month, because he could see that they were distressed by the rumour. The person in question was a good employee, but just had some external family problems to resolve.

His next action was to call all of us into the boardroom and confronted the rumour head on. He spoke first about how life can throw us all curve balls, and that we are all human, and that we all make mistakes, and that none of us can judge anyone until we had walked every step in their shoes. He told us that we all had unique experiences and ways of dealing with life’s challenges. That was what made us all originals.

He told us upfront that nothing that he was going to say would leave the boardroom. He told us wat the facts were in relation to the rumour, and he said that after he told us all the facts, that if he ever heard anyone speak about it again, they would be dismissed.

He allowed questions for those who wanted to ask questions or were concerned for the employee. He also told us what the employee would like us to do in relation to the situation they found themselves in.

It took fifteen minutes and everyone knew what was true and what the next steps were in the employee’s life ahead. The employee took the month off and when they returned, they were welcomed back, and the sting of the rumour had died out completely. Life moves fast, so everyone had processed and dealt with the news.

This was the best way to deal with the rumour. There could be no more embellishment of stories and creative projections, and the cancer was obliterated that afternoon in that boardroom.

This is a strategy that I use in my personal and work life too, if I ever encounter rumours at work or at home amongst family and extended family. I may not resolve it perfectly every time because with family you don’t have the authority over extended family like our CEO had over us.

Thank you for reading and I hope this article was of value to you.