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Lying in the workplace is problematic and can erode trust. Creating a workplace where integrity thrives requires a collective effort from both management and employees.
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The complexities of lying in a workplace environment
28 February 2025
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10 minute read
People lie. It's a universal truth; we've all done it. Some tell innocent white lies or half-truths, while others tell more significant lies. Some lie occasionally, while others do so consistently, driven by specific reasons or merely out of habit, influenced by their personality type.
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The reasons that some people lie are pretty obvious:
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Fear: To protect themselves when they've done something wrong, fearing the consequences if they're found out.
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Avoiding embarrassment: They worry about looking foolish or incompetent and feel the need to make up stories to deflect.
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Fear of disappointment: They worry about disappointing someone, especially someone who they consider a respected colleague or even a boss.
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Self-preservation: They are caught off guard without having all the details and resort to lying to protect themselves.
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Social acceptance: They are nervous and want to fit in socially, so they make up stories or embellish details to sound more interesting.
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Ego and power: They take the opportunity to look good or take advantage of a situation driven by ego or power.
In the workplace, lies can range from seemingly harmless to significantly damaging. Some common examples include exaggerating qualifications or experience on a resume, taking credit for a colleague's work, or fabricating reasons for missing deadlines. Employees might also lie about their whereabouts during work hours, invent reasons for calling in sick, or misrepresent the progress of a project.
Regardless of the size of the lie or the reason for it, lying in the workplace is problematic, as it erodes trust, and raises questions about integrity. While we may think we understand why staff members lie, we might not always be correct. Therefore, workplaces should foster an environment that promotes honest and ethical behaviour.
From a workplace perspective, many things can be incorporated into the culture of an organisation that can encourage positive behaviour; these could include:
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Living and breathing strong behaviour-driven company values that promote truthfulness and ethical behaviour starting with strong nouns or adjectives that the company lives and breathes by (i.e. Integrity, respect, trust, honesty, ethics, accountability etc). Keywords that are ingrained in the behaviour of all staff).
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Clear policies about expected behaviour and codes of conduct for accountability to ensure everyone is held to the same standards.
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Lead by example. Management and leaders should demonstrate the values in their actions and decision-making and hold themselves publicly accountable.
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Common KPIs for living company values and encouraging staff members to practice the values all day every day.
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Company-wide story sharing and open communication celebrating the wins and addressing the losses in a meaningful way that ties into the company values
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Learning and development: people managers should be trained to create safe spaces for open communication, focusing on emotional intelligence and effective communication strategies. This will encourage staff to embrace company values and address challenges with support from their managers. Consistently reinforcing honesty is crucial. Managers should acknowledge that everyone makes mistakes, share stories of overcoming errors, and express gratitude for transparency. They should ask staff what they need to feel safe discussing concerns and promote a solutions-oriented mindset. By owning and fixing issues rather than hiding them, organisations can foster a culture of honesty and transparency, where employees feel supported and valued.
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Recognise and reward staff members who consistently display company values. This will highlight the values in practice and can encourage others to do the same via learned behaviour.
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Community initiatives: encourage staff to participate in social responsibility projects by offering volunteer days or potentially organising events that directly impact charities (i.e. community donation projects or fundraising etc) or other initiatives that directly speak to the company values.
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Employee assistance programs provide confidential safe spaces that allow staff to speak with qualified counsellors on the issues that may impact their ability to tell the truth at work.
With the above in mind, it’s important to recognise that a company and its managers can only do so much to foster an environment where truth-telling is encouraged and becomes part of the culture. The other half, and perhaps the hardest part, is getting staff who tend to lie to embrace honesty. This is not always as easy as it sounds, as everyone has a different mindset, largely influenced by their personality type.
For some personalities, such as narcissists, lying can be ingrained in who they are, often driven by ego or a craving for attention. Changing their behaviour might be challenging. Compulsive liars also pose a significant challenge, as they tend to lie habitually, even in situations where it’s unnecessary. Their lies are often driven by a need for attention or underlying insecurities.
However, anxious personalities may be more receptive to change. These individuals typically lie to avoid confrontation or out of fear of consequences. They often lack the confidence to tell the truth, fearing negative reactions from their managers. Building their confidence and fostering a supportive environment can help them embrace honesty.
Empaths, who possess a high level of emotional intelligence and are caring and compassionate, might also lie about their own experiences to make themselves more relatable. Understanding and addressing these tendencies can help create a more transparent and honest workplace culture.
One could argue that narcissists and compulsive liars present more significant challenges than anxious individuals or empaths. However, the fundamental issue remains unchanged: all staff, regardless of personality, should tell the truth at work. It's essential to address any lies and hold individuals accountable, ensuring they understand that their reasons for lying do not make it acceptable. Deceptive behaviour should not go unnoticed or unaddressed, as maintaining a culture of honesty is crucial for the integrity of the workplace.
You can performance manage staff who have issues with truth-telling as it can have a signification impact on their credibility, quality of work, team dynamics and overall reputation and have the potential to harm even relationships with clients and stakeholders. It’s not an easy process to undertake which is why evidence is of course required but once gathered it should be addressed quickly and privately.
Relevant staff members need to be put on notice and counselled on the repercussions which could potentially be serious. Inaction on the part of management can quickly damage the culture and job satisfaction of those doing the right thing which is why action must be taken to safeguard the culture of the organisation.
Ultimately, creating a workplace where integrity thrives requires a collective effort from both management and employees. By working together, organisations can build a positive and trustworthy environment, where lying becomes unnecessary, and honesty is the foundation of all work interactions.
Written by Barbara Selmer Hansen, director and HR partner at Impact Business Consulting. Barbara is an HR consultant and coach who assists small to medium businesses in managing their people-related challenges. She can be reached at
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