“Indispensable outlier” is a term used to describe a person who is seen either by themself or by others as irreplaceable in the workplace. This most often comes with a set of negative connotations and implications.
To think someone is indispensable “no matter what” is counterintuitive. This is because we know every individual can be replaced in a healthy organization. It doesn’t at all mean that we won’t miss the person when they accept a different position, a promotion, or retire. Nor does it imply that they may not be the best person to date in that role. They may even a ‘living legend’ in doing what they do. And they may well be (and hopefully are) well-respected and liked.
But what we are saying is that at some point all of us will leave the role we are in at this moment. And no well-intentioned person wishes that when they depart a role or organization that all the walls crumble behind them. No well-intentioned team player wishes that everything they’ve been a part will fall in a giant pit that opens up in the Earth in their wake.
The healthier the organization, whether that is a company, non-profit, civic organization, educational institution, or otherwise, the easier and smoother transitions are made. Because in a healthy organization there is succession planning, opportunity to advance for all, mentorship, and mutual support for the common good. And in that type of organization changes often result in the new person in the role being able to simply build atop the success the previous person created, while honoring their predecessor’s hard work and successes.
Think of all the organizations where people speculated things might not carry on after a particular person left their role. Thinking in positive terms, consider the following. There were those who thought the United States would collapse after George Washington. It did not. There were people who believed Ford Motor Company would collapse after Henry Ford. It did not. You can think of endless other examples.
Why then the negative connotation of indispensable outlier?
Often when we hear this term applied, it is describing someone who wants others to believe they are irreplaceable. A person with negative intensions may accomplish this in the following ways through consistent behavior:
Hoarding information and access unreasonably
Restricting parties from interacting
Behaving in a bullying or belittling way
Acting unapproachable
Refusing to participate in joint activities
Rejecting any new ideas that are not their own
Using outgoing “feedback” as a punitive weapon, rather than with goodwill for the benefit of both parties
Blocking any feedback on their own bad behavior
Taking a “you need to stay in your lane” approach where collaboration would be normal otherwise
Actively micromanaging
Viewing hardworking team members or team members with experience or credentials different than their own as active threats
Actively gossiping
Often the indispensable outlier misbehaves and gets away with it. Maybe the person treats others particularly badly but the manager says they can’t address it because that person “has so much technical knowledge that we could never find someone else to do that job as well.” Or, “we just have to put up with them acting like a jerk because ______” What’s in that blank really doesn’t matter, because consistent bad behavior is unfair to all concerned and slowly deteriorates everything around it.
Maybe the indispensable outlier is so consistently rude and aggressive, or so passive aggressive, and so consistently hoards information that no one else in the company knows important accounts, processes, or passwords. Or maybe that person is the only one with a relationship with key vendors or customers. The person may use aggressive gossip to ‘slay’ anyone who encroaches their ‘realm’.
The costs
One of the most effective ways to lose your organization’s highest performers is to force them to work with an ‘indispensable outlier.’ One of the best ways to engrain in your organization’s culture that there is special treatment for bad behavior is to let the outlier continue to get away with their bad behavior.
What can I do?
Let’s break it down by your work relationship with this person. Are you their peer, their direct report, or are you their manager?
If you are a peer to the indispensable outlier, then you have to remember that you cannot control what that person does. You can only control you. So ensure that you do what is within your control every single day to perform at your peak. This includes your behavior and demeanor. Do not let them poison you. You can control you. The contrast of your good behavior with that of the indispensable outlier will not be unnoticed. You should also consider having a frank conversation with your manager about what you are encountering and seeing. Unless what you see is clearly outrageous, unethical, abuse, or dangerous, and in that case you have an urgent moral obligation to have a conversation with the person to whom you report as soon as possible.
If you are a direct report of an indispensable outlier, you’re in a rough position. First of all, why are you still working for them if you have come to this realization? The most fair starting point is to have a frank, respectful conversation with this manager. Calmly explain to them your observations and feelings. Hopefully this leads to some change, but if not, or if you sense retaliation, then it is time to have a conversation with HR. A next step may be simply looking for another opportunity in the organization away from this bad behavior, with a different reporting structure. Remember, what happens to you every day at work usually carries over to your life outside of work. Is the cost of this stress worth it when it impacts your family, friends, and your own health? Reporting to a bully or daily exposure to active gossip, or working for a person who refuses to give you the tools for your own success, is not fair to you. And not good for your future. Ask HR about other opportunities to which you can apply or transfer. But no matter how long you are there, remember that the one thing you can control is yourself. Keep your standards high and stay on the “high road.” You’ll be proud you did so in the long run and others will notice.
If you are the manager of an indispensable outlier, most often that means you ‘inherited’ this problem from a previous manager. Because indispensable outliers don’t happen and seize power overnight. Before taking action, be sure to consult HR or an employment law professional in your jurisdictions. After that, here are some basics to consider:
If the bad behavior the indispensable outlier is engaged in is in any way against company policy (e.g. harassment) deal with it and document it immediately according to your company policies and local laws. If there has never been a ‘paper trail’ and action plan for change started on this behavior before, then today is a better time to start then tomorrow.
If it is not that severe as you encounter it, then take the approach that everyone deserves a chance to change. So meet with the person, outline the problems you are observing, and explain your expectations for change very clearly, along with how the change will be measured. Identify that the change requirement timeline is immediate. Document the conversation and involve HR from the start.
Remember that it is possible no one has ever brought all of this to the attention of the outlier and it is possible they will change positively. If they do, continue to positively reinforce the changes you are seeing to encourage further movement.
If the behavior does not change, move through the steps for discipline until change occurs or until termination is appropriate.
It is likely that the indispensable outlier will make all of this as difficult as possible. They may depart leaving you no passwords, no records, hiding documents, talking badly about you to their direct reports, peers, and the company customers and vendors, etc. But remember, while it can be a headache, and even costly in the short term, it is not fair for to all the other team members in the organization to have to deal with this person. Think in term of the mid and long term, and the short term problems they may leave in their wake will seem much more manageable.
