Imagine this: An organization filled with smart, earnest employees…and yet, it struggles with poor morale, disengagement, or toxic teams. Most leaders’ first instinct? Identify and remove the ‘problem people’. But what if they’re going after the wrong target—and making things worse?
This is the provocative question explored in Samuel A. Culbert’s book, ‘Good People, Bad Managers: How Work Culture Corrupts Good Intentions.’ If you’ve ever witnessed talented folks get shown the door for not ‘fitting in’ or watched leadership believe that firing alone will cure a dysfunctional team, this article could shift your entire perspective.
Why Firing Isn’t a Solution—But a Disguise
Modern management often treats personnel problems like technical glitches: see the error, delete the error, case closed. Firing people can feel like swift action, but as Culbert argues, it’s usually an act of erasure—not a fix. This approach fails to address the systemic, cultural, and relational roots that drive workplace conflict or underperformance.
The Real Problem: Systemic Dysfunction, Not Bad Apples
One of the book’s central insights is that good people are consistently derailed by bad management systems. Take the example of a talented project lead struggling under unclear expectations, endless silos, or an environment that rewards conformity over candor. Firing them only removes the evidence of deeper dysfunction—it doesn’t solve for its cause.
Recent research supports this. A 2022 McKinsey report found that nearly 60% of voluntary departures could be traced back to cultural or managerial breakdowns, not a lack of skill or work ethic. High turnover rarely leads to lasting improvement—often, those who leave are simply replaced by new hires destined to face the same obstacles.
Bad Managers: Not Always Bad People
Culbert makes a critical distinction: Most managers are not inherently mean-spirited or incompetent. Many are victims of a system that prioritizes compliance and metrics over meaningful relationships and development. They follow playbooks designed for denial, blame-shifting, and protecting egos, rather than fostering psychological safety.
Consider the contrarian view—what if ‘bad managers’ could thrive as good people under a reformed system? Harvard Business Review (2023) highlights companies that paired struggling managers with coaching and high-feedback environments; many transformed from sources of turnover into champions of retention and growth.
The Trap of Technical, One-Size-Fits-All Solutions
Too often, organizational responses to complex problems are frustratingly simple: ‘hold more performance reviews,’ ‘implement zero-tolerance policies,’ or ‘just let them go.’ This ‘technical solution’ mindset reduces human complexity to boxes on a checklist, ignoring context, relationships, and individual experiences.
But as Culbert and a range of organizational psychologists (see: Adam Grant, Susan David) argue, human problems demand human—and humane—solutions. That means diving into conflict, uncovering root causes, and designing interventions that go beyond surface-level fixes.
Real-World Example: The Cost of Oversimplification
A large tech firm struggled with low morale and churn in a high-performing team. Leadership’s response? Replace the ‘problematic’ team lead. Within 18 months, the new lead—bringing a different style—hit the same cultural roadblocks, and the cycle repeated.
What actually helped: facilitated team conversations, transparent feedback loops, and reworking incentive structures so people felt safe surfacing disagreement. Turnover dropped, and performance rose by over 20% in a year (source: Stanford Center for Work, 2023).
Complex Problems Deserve Complex—And Humane—Solutions
What does it look like to tackle human workplace issues with complexity and compassion, not blunt force?
- Contextual Diagnosis: Instead of asking ‘Who’s the problem?’ ask, ‘What in our environment is making this repeated?’
- Holistic Interventions: Blend peer coaching, feedback systems, and leadership vulnerability to reset trust.
- Iterative Conversations: Make space for honest, sometimes uncomfortable discussion about culture, goals, and values—far beyond annual reviews.
- Psychological Safety: Foster an environment where people can admit mistakes, challenge ideas, and grow (Google’s Project Aristotle remains a gold standard here).
Action Steps for Leaders
- Audit your assumptions: Next time a manager suggests firing for ‘fit,’ dig deeper into systemic drivers.
- Redesign feedback: Move from one-off reviews to regular, dialogue-based feedback sessions.
- Invest in coaching: Give both employees and managers tools to grow—not just rules to follow or consequences to fear.
Conclusion: The Human-Centered Alternative
Firing may solve an immediate headache, but, as Culbert demonstrates, it rarely creates lasting health in the system. The real work is slower but infinitely more impactful: seeing people in all their complexity, and designing solutions with empathy, courage, and context in mind.
How might your organization’s story change if—before erasing people—you erased the systems making good people struggle? Would you be brave enough to try a more complex, more humane way?
