22.
Cliques
Think back to your time in junior high or high school, or check out the movie Mean Girls. You probably still remember what cliques your school had and who were in them. Even as adults, we still experience cliques every day, whether we’re part of one or are on the outside longing to get in.
In a stationary workplace, you can imagine what this looks like. The word “clique” alone evokes images of four office friends enjoying their private Wine Club Wednesdays (wine and cheese for lunch), whispering among themselves, laughing at inside jokes, and being weird and awkward around other co-workers. Are they just having a good time? Are they talking about everyone else? Why are none of us invited anyway? No matter the situation, it’s gross and juvenile.
This is one of those things that could be more difficult to detect in the virtual workplace, but it’s just as dangerous. Virtual cliques can quickly become cancerous, so you need to learn to keep an eye out for them. There is pretty much nothing you can do about people becoming close and forming relationships with one another. In fact, you want that to happen on your virtual team. But when it starts to become an exclusive club or “Mean Girl-ish,” that’s when it becomes risky business.
Let’s Level Set, Shall We?
How about we get one thing out of the way: Not all cliques are bad. In fact, the part about a small group of people who want to spend time together is usually a good thing. People do that every day. It’s healthy, and it’s normal. Until it’s not. Because, you see, cliques also have a tendency to identify people they do not want in their group—the “us four and no more” mentality. And this is precisely why the word “clique” is rarely used with a positive connotation.
Virtual Cliquery
What do cliques look like in a virtual world? And how do you address the problem when they form? We have a few thoughts on the subject for virtual managers.
Banding Together in Meetings
If you start to notice that certain people are banding together in your meetings—speaking for each other or trying to help explain each other’s points, especially if discussion gets heated—it’s a good indication that a clique has formed.
Offline Agreements
When someone is always offering advice such as, “I discussed this with so-and-so and we agree that…” it’s a fantastic indication that a clique has formed. When people are discussing things with their peers before they discuss them with you, they’ve likely formed a relationship that could turn into a clique if it hasn’t already.
Giggles Without Jokes
If you are having a virtual meeting and one or more of your staff start to engage in telling jokes or stories that only a couple others know about or can relate to, this is another indicator of potential cliquism. Keep an eye out for people making inside jokes or telling inside stories while in meetings or laughing at things that seem to have no natural root in the conversation.
Addressing Cliques Indirectly
Addressing something as subtle as cliques in a workplace—and a virtual workplace at that—is an interesting endeavor indeed. It’s not like you can just forcefully point a finger at someone and yell “Clique!!! Burn them!” because that’s crazy and also inappropriate. But there are some things you can preemptively do before it becomes a real issue.
Emphasize the Importance of Teamwork
You will find more suggestions in the chapter on team building, but take the opportunity in meetings to reiterate the importance of working as a team to get the job done. Or schedule some sort of team building session to really drive the point home.
Review Policies
From time to time it’s not a bad idea (even aside from the clique issue) to review policies with your staff. Remind them that work equipment is to be used for work only. Hopefully they will start to understand that their clique business doesn’t belong and shouldn’t continue.
Spend Time With Suspected Clique Members
No, don’t “join” the group. Simply spending a little extra time with those you suspect are part of the clique could go a long way toward dissolving it. Chat or call them individually and ask them how things are going. Let them talk, and listen well. It might be that they are simply frustrated with some aspect of the job and are looking for others to accept and commiserate with them.
A Few More Thoughts
Look deeper. A clique is made up of two parts: people spending time together and people who don’t want anyone else in the group. Naturally, people want to spend time together because they hold common views about a particular person or thing. In this space, it’s likely a particular view on the workplace. Dig into that a little bit. Look beneath the surface, understanding that in this environment, it likely started because someone was unhappy. Refer to the chapter on morale for ways to address the happiness issue.
If all else fails, address it directly. If someone in your organization is becoming problematic because they are involved in a clique or are its leader, you will need to address that. If you tried to indirectly deal with it before it became a real problem, and the problem just got worse, you have to address it head on. The last thing you want or need is for a clique to grow in magnitude and unhappiness toward another person, because it has the potential to turn into harassment or bullying.
Signing Off
You might not be able to come right out and say “you guys are in a clique and it needs to stop now,” but with your virtual manager superpowers you will be able to spot a clique from a mile away (or from around the globe) and leap to your team’s rescue with a single bound. Understand that cliques can start out innocently enough, but could easily turn into something much uglier, such as harassment or bullying (see our chapter on this), if not addressed. Remember—you are responsible for your entire team. So do what you know is best for the group as a whole and take the steps you need to stop the progression of ugly clique behavior.