In my department (this may not apply to the entire company) upper management maintained a constant fear for the staff that anyone could be fired at anytime. People regularly disappeared after 5pm and you would just never see them again. Because everyone was afraid- in an effort to protect themselves- there was constant tattling, a sense of attendance taking in meetings, people reporting your linkedin actions if they suggested you might be looking for another job. We also held not so secret reviews 2x a year where all managers participated in a meeting where we went around and said ways in which each employee had failed to perform in a given year. And the communication style across the entire department was 'whispered secrets'- things were rarely announced-- they were just 'trickled down' which meant communicating one:one- creating the feeling that you were sharing a secret vs. communicating relevant information so people could better do their jobs. Negative, heartless, tight-fisted, ineffective, secretive with the lower ranks so afraid that on their best day- 'unfriendly' would be the kindest word to describe the team.
