MANAGEMENT methods favoured by TV personalities such as Sir Alan Sugar and Gordon Ramsay may be influencing the wider business world, a survey suggested.
The poll by communication experts The Aziz Corporation found British company managers believe swearing by their staff was more acceptable than lying.
Of the 308 senior managers and directors surveyed, 66% thought lying by employees was "very annoying" but only 37% objected to expletives being flung around the office.
The results also showed that 36% found swearing tolerable compared with just 8% who said they would be willing to tolerate lying.
Aziz Corporation chairman Prof Khalid Aziz said: "Bosses prefer their colleagues' language to be honest and accurate even it that means tolerating the odd expletive here and there."
"It does appear that the culture of TV personalities such as Sir Alan Sugar and Gordon Ramsay is permeating the business world.
"However, while a direct no-nonsense approach may be preferable to the real life David Brents who merely talk-the-talk, good communicators do not need to swear."
Results from the survey also revealed that alcohol is less likely to be a feature of a business lunch today than during the champagne-fuelled 1980s.
Only two fifths (39%) of managers think it is acceptable to drink alcohol at a lunch and 57% believe it is fine not to offer an alcoholic drink to guests.
