Sales technology has changed, but toxic workplace culture hasn’t
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Sales technology has changed, but toxic workplace culture hasn’t
Come for Alec Baldwin’s abusive dressing-down of the salesmen; stay for the amazing performances by Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alan Arkin, Ed Harris, Jonathan Pryce and Kevin Spacey. “Glengarry Glen Ross,” a tragedy about workplace culture gone terribly wrong, makes for stressful and exhilarating viewing.
David Mamet’s play was adapted to film in 1993, a smartphone-less land of coin-operated payphones. Given the tech of the time, it cannot address a vast challenge for people these days trying to earn a buck through strong-armed sales tactics: More than 30 years after that movie came out, artificial intelligence could be making the human element obsolete in the world of high-pressure selling.
The “Glengarry” guys rail and whine about the terrible quality of the sales leads they’re given. These days, digital cookie trackers can identify suckers at lightspeed. AI even does the calling.
An online magazine of customer experience technology, CX Today, indicates AI has gone beyond taking your inbound customer questions or complaints. AI can “be an incredible resource for outbound sales, proactive customer support, and more,” CX Today reported. “In fact, by 2026, some experts predict contact centers will unlock $80 billion in savings by reducing labor costs.”
Federal regulators banned robocalls using AI-generated voices earlier this year, but AI increasingly powers many other types of selling by phone.
While technology has changed since “Glengarry,” the dehumanizing workplace culture of the film is all too common today. Researchers at the AI-powered workplace insights company CultureX analyzed negative comments about workplace culture posted on the job site Glassdoor. The researchers identified five attributes of a toxic workplace likely to drive employees away. Each and every one of these toxicities is clearly featured in the fictional “Mitch & Murray” real estate firm. It’s a cauldron that melts down its salesforce.
Here are the real-world “Toxic Five,” according to CultureX, and the parallels I see in the movie:
- A workplace that is disrespectful: It’s the middle of the night, but Baldwin’s bully-for-hire won’t even let Lemmon’s character have a cup of coffee. “Coffee’s for closers!” he barks.
- A workplace that is noninclusive: All the “Glengarry” sales people are white salesmen. The movie version slightly tones down the play’s racist remarks.
- A workplace that is unethical: Whether they’re on a call or doing an in-home “sit,” the salesmen let lies — fibs, whoppers and everything in-between — fly nearly non-stop.
- A workplace that is abusive: Baldwin’s corporate rep demeans Harris’ character by belittling his economic and social status, telling him “You drove a Hyundai to get here. I drove an $80,000 red BMW that’s parked right outside. That’s my name!”
- A workplace that is cutthroat: The company in “Glengarry” pits salesperson against salesperson, and the stakes are brutal: “First prize is a Cadillac Eldorado,” the salesmen are told. “Anybody wanna see second prize? Second prize is a set of steak knives. Third prize is you’re fired.” Salesperson of the month would be one thing. But encouraging a culture where colleagues actively work to undermine or thwart one another is not a team — it’s a dog fight.
The CultureX researchers, citing data from the “Great Resignation” period that followed the worst months of the pandemic, found toxic culture was ten times more predictive of a company’s attrition rate than pay. Poor performance is expensive, but having staff quit is too. Employees in “Glengarry”-type work environments tend to be disengaged and, no surprise, very disengaged employees are 20% less productive.
Workplace catchphrases
Have you ever had a boss try to motivate you with a phrase similar to “always be closing”? Was it good advice or was it forced? We’d love to hear about it.
Write to us at extracredit@marketplace.org or fill out the form below, and we’ll share the best responses in a future newsletter.
How to watch “Glengarry Glen Ross”
The movie is available to stream for free with ads on YouTube. It’s also streaming on Hoopla and Kanopy for free for some library card holders, and on Peacock and Netflix with a subscription.
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