I agree with these points, however some level of quirkiness is defined as a hallmark of very effective workers here [1]
I wonder if it might be possible to misconstrue behavior and label off such an individual as toxic.
Thanks for the answer. I hope all firms have a formal HR process where they state expectations and confront the individual before he is labelled as toxic. I think everyone should have a chance!
Well, for truly toxic individuals, warnings or confrontations are useless (I’ve learned this the hard way, and not for lack of trying). It is impossible to get them to understand that they have a problem; anything you say, no matter how clearly articulated, fact-based, and objective, will be rationalized away. These individuals cannot accept that they may be wrong.
- "This is stupid" or other negative comments in code reviews (aka non-constructive criticism)
- Yelling or cursing at people because they question you and your decisions.
- talking bad about the company or other teammates to people behind their back.
- throwing a "temper tantrum" when you don't get your way when it comes to some architectural decision.
- refusing to work with certain people or only willing to work with certain people.
- Making large-scale decisions and changes without documentation, discussion, and buy-in from engineering leadership and your peers.