Think about what you were brought on to accomplish. What needs to happen or change to hit those deliverables. What the benefits would be for the overall organization if that happens. With those three KPIs as your guideposts, you can have a more direct and succinct conversation with your boss regarding the dynamic that is happening and the devisiveness it is causing. 1) Prepare: Before going to the meeting know exactly which three points you want to make and bring specific stories and examples of the behaviors. General, they're negative, they're not supportive isn't going to cut it. 2) Be curious: If your boss mentions promoting them, ask open ended powerful questions, "What leadership qualities do you see? How can we work together to enhance his leadership skills before making this move." 3) Have a plan in place, what trainings will you incorporate into the process. What change management processes will you intertwine to move the culture needle. 4) Directly ask "What are your expectations and results are you looking for in the culture shift." How will you know it's happened? How can I get more authorship over the situation? Good luck!

If you don't have a supportive manager or you think your manager has a different solution to your team problem (i.e. promote the bad actors), see if you can find another manager in the company to talk too. Each company has it's own culture and as a new employee to the company (I'm assuming you're new to your company) getting feedback from someone who has been around can really help you manage a potential mine field. Some additional background from the two times in my career I was hired to "fix a broken team" . I have been hired plenty of time to fix broken processes or products but fixing broken teams is a challenge. First time had an easy solution - team needed a leader - I was a good leader - upper management and the previous leader knew he was the problem and he moved over to a job that better suited him - I lead the team - problem solved. The 2nd time was completely different. The broken team had been insolated by their Director. His way to solve the problems his team was having was to build metaphorical walls around his team, to tell them they weren't doing anything wrong, and to create long upfont processes to slow down the work coming into his team. Long story short - New VP hired above him. VP saw immediately what the problem was. Director got fired and I was hired to "fix" things with his broken team. What a horrible six months it was, because the team loved their previous boss (well, why won't they? he told them that the problem was over there and they were doing nothing wrong) . I did have the support of my VP and our HR representative, so that's better than being hated by the team and my management :) - I met with each team member twice weekly to get their feedback on why their team had the lowest approval rating in the company. Those meeting quickly identified what team members were salvageable Hint: sometimes team members can't come back from a bad experience and the kindness to them is to help them move to another department or to help them leave the company with a reasonable and honorable package. - I met with our internal clients many times to fix those relationships Hint: if you have internal clients you might be able to get support from them if you need to make difficult or contrary suggestions. Having internal clients say "These two people are the problem" can sway management. - I scheduled at least an hour a week for team building (lunches out, personality workshops) and I encouraged team members to take as company-offered classes (giving them something else to focus on) Hint: If your company offers classes they offer or your HR rep (if your department has one) can run those "what type of color are you" and how does your color work with other" class for you, take them up on it. We did a session on how teams function (the storming, norming and performing group performance model) and it was really enlightening to the team for them to know teams change when new people join and that's okay - I scheduled a monthly meeting with my VP and separately with my HR rep where I gave them updates on what was working, what was not working, what was planned for the next month and what I needed help with. It helped me Hint: If you have support from your manager getting their feedback and their help along the way is a great. - Document document document Hint: keep good notes on what's working and what's not working. Those notes are invaluable for your meetings, if you need to create a PIP or if you need to move staff out of your team.

Your strategy should also include personal and professional development exercises that provide the professional development and self awareness needed to inspire them to change their behavior. Moving them without growth and accountability will plant the same seeds of toxin in a new department which does not achieve the intended plan. Your strategy should also include a leadership development plan with actionable, measurable goals that are aligned with the company's desired outcomes. This should include mentors and coaches.

If you were brought on board to help a clashing team, then you certainly aren’t the first to observe this dynamic, I’m sure! I agree with having a conversation with your boss and getting his perspective on the dynamic you are observing. Before doing so, I would pull the mission, vision and values of the org and see if alignment with the values (or lack thereof) could be used as part of that conversation. Maybe part of your work revolves around exercises to reflect and define the true culture - which may be a difficult conversation to facilitate. If you feel too close to it and have the resources perhaps you suggest an external consultant. Good luck!

Ooh that is a sticky situation. I would have a conversation with your boss about the challenges you're facing at the moment. You could approach it from the perspective that you have made some observations with your fresh eyes that are concerning. Have some plans ready for solving the problem. For example, if they feed off one another perhaps one of them could move to another team. You could suggest leadership training for the individuals or for everyone but sometimes not bringing the issues to their attention directly may make them feel they aren't who it's directed at, seeing no issue with their behavior.