Organizations can prevent financial losses associated with negative communication by selecting and developing leaders who provide healthy and constructive feedback. Such leaders foster positive behaviors in employees and have the ability build a cohesive workforce. In contrast, a leader with a toxic communication style who publicly degrades employees signals other team members that both the leadership style and the behavior are acceptable. Once a behavior is recognized as acceptable in an organization, it seeps into the corporate culture — and once any behavior becomes a part of the corporate culture, any attempt to change it becomes a massive undertaking. Leaders really do lead by example.
