Your “Open-Door Policy” Isn’t Working

Every toxic workplace has at least one thing in common. Someone in charge who proudly says, “My door is always open.” 

They love saying it.
They say it to new hires, to seasoned employees, to anyone brave or naïve enough to raise a concern. 

And on paper it sounds great. An open-door policy! Transparent! Supportive! Efficient!

Except it’s not. 

Becaus here’s what never gets said out loud:

If the room is full of tension, no one wants to walk through the door. 

I’ve worked in environments where the person saying “my door is always open” was the same person we all tried to avoid. Where people kept mental tallies of how many days they could go without speaking to upper management. Where the only think “open” about the door was how wide your ass would get handed to you if you walked through it with a complaint. 

That’s not access. That’s a trap. 

An open-door policy doesn’t work if the culture around it tells people

• You’re soft for speaking up.
• You’re disloyal for involving HR. 
• You’d better fix your attitude before you bring anything to leadership.

That’s not leadership. That’s control with a smiley face sticker on it. 

If you want people to actually talk to you, if you want to be the kind of leader people trust, you have to earn it with more than a catchphrase. You need to create an environment where people believe they’ll be heard, not punished. Where they know the risk of speaking up won’t outweigh the benefit of staying quiet. 

That starts small. 

It starts with how you react the first time someone tells you something uncomfortable. 

It starts with how you treat the person who brings you bad news. 

It starts with who you listen to, and who you dismiss. 

I’ve seen “open-door policies” weaponized by managers who just wanted to avoid union pressure. I’ve seen leaders say “come to me with anything” and then roll their eyes in the breakroom when someone actually does. And I’ve seen great ideas die in silence because nobody wanted to be the one who “made it weird.” 

You don’t need a policy. You need a presence. 

And if you’re not getting feedback, it’s not because everyone’s happy. It’s because the door may be open, but nobody feels safe walking through it.