# EP 43 The Toxic Environment of the Empty Red Seat - and How to Cure It

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-hr-life-podcast-7368906/ep-43-the-toxic-environment-of-the-empty-red-seat-and-how-to-cure-it
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-hr-life-podcast-7368906/ep-43-the-toxic-environment-of-the-empty-red-seat-and-how-to-cure-it.md
Podcast: [The HR Life Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-hr-life-podcast-7368906)
Published: 2026-04-07T12:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/98283dfa
Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/98283dfa/f5f46acb.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-hr-life-podcast-7368906/episodes/ep-43-the-toxic-environment-of-the-empty-red-seat-and-how-to-cure-it
Duration seconds: 5243

## Resource

In this episode Tony and Steve tackle toxic work environments and Tony's fantastic ability to kill wasps from more than 10 feet away. What is a toxic work environment? What role do front line managers play in creating or toxic environments? Do front line managers or the C-suite have a bigger impact in your efforts to improve culture? In this week's HR in Life Segment the guys talk about misunderstanding the meaning of ethics. Why do people mistake bad business decisions for unethical behavior? The five elements of Toxicity Abusive Disrespectful Unethical Cutthroat Non-inclusive Quote of the Episode: "So is this something he needs to talk to Jesus about?" - Tony Benjamin Learn more about Fantastic Tony Benjamin at: https://www.thegrangellc.com/ Learn more about Steven “Big Deal” Smith at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/ Learn more about the books mentioned on the podcast at: https://thehiringtreebook.com/hr-life-podcast Learn more about our sponsor MegastarHR at: https://www.megastarhr.com/ Lean more about Jobs for America's Graduates (JAG) at: https://jag.org/ Join us at Fuel HR on May 14. Learn more at: https://hracu.starchapter.com/meetinginfo.php?id=88&ts=1744305292

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## Transcript

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