Speaking up, falling silent: Voice, silence and the emergence of toxic organizational culture in a technology company

Research shows that employee voice and silence are critical to organizational functioning. However, their role in the emergence and persistence of toxic organizational cultures remains under-theorized, particularly where gender and occupational roles intersect. Drawing on a 6-year qualitative study of a newly established technology company, we examine (a) how and why a toxic organizational culture emerges and persists, (b) how employee voice and silence interact with this culture's dynamics and (c) the roles occupational position and gender play in these processes. Our findings indicate that a candid speak-up climate, combined with self-management and asymmetrical role clarity, can lead to an uneven distribution of voice and silence among siloed and highly gendered occupational roles. We theorize that these dynamics shape shared beliefs about whose knowledge ‘counts’, whose voices are legitimate and who becomes marginalized in a toxic organizational culture characterized by functional silofication. Contributing a culturally embedded perspective on voice and silence, we highlight the importance of addressing systemic inequality to prevent toxic organizational cultures from emerging.