Even with hybrid or fully remote work setups, office politics woes are still a fixture of business life: “Toxic personalities” in the workplace are just as pervasive in the post-covid era, a survey of 800 US employees found, according to Bloomberg. Those surveyed cited an uptick in coworkers sucking up to their superiors, in hopes of making sure their work is acknowledged, since virtual work makes it “more difficult to get quality time with managers,” Pepperdine University professor and co-author of the study Dana Sumpter said. More than a third of the survey respondents reported behaviors such as rumor spreading, excessive flattery towards bosses, blame-gaming, backstabbing, and credit snatching, while half of those polled expressed the pressure felt to partake in these behaviors. Perhaps more tellingly, a quarter of respondents have actually left a job because of these behaviors.

The solution? Hostile behavior could be eliminated once managers take control of the situation by eliminating factors that encourage these toxic habits, while praising positive behaviors like collaboration and ethical social behavior, Sumpter tells the business information service.

Finding the silver lining: The survey found that spreading rumors could help shed light on what’s happening behind the scenes, spreading awareness among workers. It also highlighted that sucking up is part of social conventions which improve communication flows.

The world’s top computer-led trading firms are behind a new class of megarich,Bloombergreported last week. And they’re making their fortunes differently: Unlike Warren Buffet and Steve Schwarzman, the new moguls are making a lot of money, fast. While they have not yet surpassed Buffet in terms of wealth, their risky innovations — including heavy reliance on technology — are paying off handsomely as they follow financial trends.

Hedge fund management company Citadel is at the helm of the market, with USD 59 bn in equities, commodities and more made USD 16 bn in bottomline for clients last year. Ken Griffin, the company founder and CEO, is worth an estimated USD 35 bn. Griffin is followed by Jeff Yass, the founder of Susquehanna International Group — a derivatives-focused trading firm — whose fortune is estimated at USD 33.1 bn. Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao comes third with USD 28.2 bn, which he earned from the crypto exchange company.

But where are the women? The list, which comprises 26 finance tycoons, does not feature any women. Also, it excludes people who’ve been previously listed among the richest 300 in 2013 for a more updated outlook, retirees, people who’ve inherited money that contributes significantly to their current standing, and individuals over the age of 70.

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