Jonathon Grantham

MANAGING DIRECTOR, NEXOID

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE & CULTURE RISK: DETECTING TOXIC BEHAVIOURS IN MODERN ORGANISATIONS

The Hidden Cost of Toxic Behaviour

How can leaders distinguish confidence and ambition from manipulation and the abuse of power? How do they recognise individuals whose influence shapes decisions and relationships across an organisation, while quietly undermining trust and weakening the business? And why are destructive behaviours sometimes not only tolerated, but rewarded?

Human behaviour, personality and informal power dynamics have a far greater influence on how companies operate than organisational charts and formal management systems might suggest. Understanding these less visible forces is essential for leaders seeking to protect the quality of decision-making, organisational integrity and long-term business performance.

Jonathon Grantham is a computer scientist, entrepreneur and business transformation specialist with more than 20 years of experience at the intersection of technology, business, organisational culture and human behaviour.

Throughout his career, he has worked with international companies including Coca-Cola, Porsche, Volvo, Jameson Whiskey and Absolut Vodka, as well as organisations across the public and non-profit sectors. His experience spans business process improvement, change management, business consulting and software development, giving him a broad perspective on how organisations operate and evolve.

He holds a degree in Computer Science and an MBA from a university within Australia’s Group of Eight (Go8). He is the founder and Managing Director of Nexoid, a company developing software solutions to improve business processes and support organisational transformation.

He has also collaborated with the University of Oxford on international research examining how the COVID-19 pandemic and political interests shaped societies and political processes around the world.

At the heart of his work is the psychology of power: how personality, manipulation and less visible aspects of human behaviour determine who gains influence, how decisions are made and why destructive patterns can persist and even thrive within organisations. His work draws on evolutionary psychology, personality analysis and corporate intelligence to examine how power dynamics play out in the business world. He is the author of The Corporate Sociopath Handbook, which explores five dark personality traits — narcissism, Machiavellianism, sociopathy, sadism and spitefulness — and how they manifest in corporate environments. A significant part of the book focuses on recognising manipulative tactics and developing strategies to protect individuals and organisations from their consequences.

Key insights from Jonathon Grantham

Recognising the Business Impact of Manipulative Behaviour

Narcissism, Machiavellianism and other manipulative patterns extend well beyond interpersonal relationships. Within organisations, they can influence access to information, the allocation of responsibility, decision-making and whose interests ultimately prevail. Recognising these behaviours is essential to understanding the risks they pose to teams, relationships and business performance.

Power, Information and Informal Centres of Influence

Formal organisational structures do not always reveal how decisions are really made. Control over information, personal agendas, informal alliances and strategic positioning can create parallel centres of power. Understanding these dynamics helps leaders identify where influence truly lies and recognise the barriers to transparency and accountability.

Building Organisations Resilient to Destructive Behaviour

Organisational resilience depends on more than strategy, processes and control systems. It also requires a culture in which concerns can be raised openly, accountability cannot easily be avoided, and inappropriate behaviour is challenged regardless of an individual's position or performance. Leaders play a critical role in creating such an environment.

Jonathon Grantham at Balkan Business Forum 2027

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE & CULTURE RISK: DETECTING TOXIC BEHAVIOURS IN MODERN ORGANISATIONS

In his keynote, Jonathon Grantham addresses one of the most sensitive challenges in corporate governance: individuals whose behaviour and influence can become a serious organisational risk, while remaining largely invisible to formal systems of oversight and control.

Drawing on real-world business examples, he will explore how manipulation is used to gain and maintain influence, how it shapes relationships and decisions, and why organisations often fail to respond before the damage is done. Particular attention will be given to how leaders can recognise these patterns and establish clear boundaries of accountability.

Participants will be invited to examine their own organisational practices through four key questions:

How can leaders recognise manipulative behaviour at the highest levels of an organisation? Which behaviours may signal an abuse of influence, and how can they be distinguished from legitimate ambition, decisiveness and high performance?
Why do organisations sometimes reward behaviours that undermine their long-term interests? How can incentive systems, unwritten rules and an excessive focus on short-term results encourage manipulation and the concealment of problems?
How do informal power dynamics shape business decisions? In what ways can control over information, personal agendas and hidden influences undermine transparency and accountability?
How can companies protect themselves against destructive patterns of behaviour? What mechanisms of accountability, open communication and organisational culture can leaders put in place to identify problems early and prevent them from spreading?

This session invites business leaders to look beyond the structures, procedures and performance metrics traditionally associated with corporate governance, and consider the human behaviours that shape how a company actually functions. After all, organisational resilience depends not only on the quality of its strategy, but also on the behaviours its culture allows, tolerates and rewards.