The No Asshole Loophole: Giving the Ass a Free Pass

I’ve been reading about Robert Sutton’s The No Asshole Rule, and there’s a lot about his thinking that aligns with what I’m trying to achieve with SpatzAI.

Sutton’s basic proposition is simple: workplaces shouldn’t tolerate people who repeatedly demean, humiliate, intimidate or disrespect others — regardless of how talented or productive they might be.

But Sutton makes an interesting distinction between someone who occasionally behaves like an asshole and what he calls a “certified asshole” — someone who displays a persistent pattern of poor behaviour.

I think that creates an asshole loophole.

If poor behaviour needs to become repeated before it becomes a problem, aren’t we effectively giving the “occasional ass” a free pass?

SpatzAI approaches the problem differently.

No poor behaviour too small to address.

If Jim speaks disrespectfully to Sue, Sue shouldn’t need to decide whether:

1. Jim is an asshole?
2. Just an ass that is about to establish a pattern?
3. She should complain to her manager or HR?
   or
4. Wait for him to do it again.

She can simply caution what she thinks is his objectionable behaiour.

“Jim, I would like to caution you on how you just spoke to me.”

Jim can acknowledge it:

“Fair call, Sue. Sorry. Let me try that again.”

Problem addressed. Behaviour course-corrected. Back to work.

Or, challenge or ignore Sue’s caution.

And if Jim challenges the caution or continues with the behaviour, then then Sue can up the ante informing him that she will use the SpatzChat 3-step app, or if still needed, post it automatically, via the chat app, on their Slack team + AI review channel.

“Don’t worry Jim, I will Spatz you later.” At a more convenient time.

This distinction seems to us to be important.

Escalation should depend on Jim’s response to Sue’s caution, not simply on whether his behaviour becomes repetitive.

And the threshold for addressing poor behaviour can be very low precisely because the initial intervention is also low.

Sutton focuses largely on identifying and dealing with persistently “difficult people”.

SpatzAI focuses on giving ordinary team members an agreed process for addressing individual objectionable behaviours before they become a pattern.

So perhaps we don’t need to identify the assholes at all.

We just need a fair way to address the behaviour.

No behaviour too small to address.
And leaves no asshole loophole.