You’ve probably worked with one. That person who seems impossibly charming one minute and cold-blooded the next. They climb the corporate ladder with a speed that defies logic, leaving a trail of confused, burnt-out colleagues in their wake. We usually just call them "toxic bosses" or "office politicians," but Dr. Paul Babiak and Dr. Robert D. Hare have a much more specific, chilling term for them. They call them corporate psychopaths. Their seminal work, Snakes in Suits, isn’t just some dusty HR manual; it’s basically a field guide for surviving a predator who trades a literal jungle for a glass-walled corner office.
Most people think of psychopaths as the villains in a true-crime podcast. You know, the "Silence of the Lambs" archetype. But the reality is way more subtle. And frankly, way more dangerous for your career. Snakes in Suits argues that the traits we often celebrate in high-stakes business—risk-taking, decisiveness, charisma, and a lack of emotional "clutter"—are the exact same traits found in a clinical psychopath.
The book doesn't just theorize. It breaks down how these individuals exploit the chaos of modern corporate restructuring to hide their lack of actual productivity. It’s scary because it’s true.
The "Subcriminal" Psychopath: They Aren't All in Jail
It’s a common misconception that every psychopath ends up behind bars. Dr. Robert Hare, the creator of the PCL-R (Psychopathy Checklist-Revised), spent decades studying people in prisons. But he realized something. The same personality structure exists in people who are successful, wealthy, and powerful. These are the "subcriminal" psychopaths. They don't necessarily want to kill you; they just want your job, your influence, or your company’s capital.
The Snakes in Suits book highlights that while a "traditional" psychopath might use physical violence, the corporate version uses manipulation. They use "the gift of gab." It’s a linguistic mask. If you’ve ever sat in a meeting where someone used a lot of buzzwords to say absolutely nothing, yet everyone nodded along because they felt "inspired," you might have been watching a master at work. They aren't just lying; they’re performing.
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How a Snake Actually Climbs the Ladder
It isn't random. Babiak and Hare describe a very specific four-phase process that these individuals use to infiltrate and dominate an organization.
Entry. This is the honeymoon phase. The snake identifies a "target" or a "patron"—usually a high-ranking executive who can be easily swayed by flattery. They ace the interview because they are masters at reading people. They tell the recruiter exactly what they want to hear. They don't just "fit" the culture; they mirror it perfectly.
Assessment. Once they’re in, they start sorting the staff. They look for "pawns" (people who can do their work for them) and "patrons" (people who can protect them). They also identify "detractors"—the people who see through the mask. Those people get marginalized or bullied out of the company very quickly.
Manipulation. This is where the gaslighting starts. They create conflict between coworkers to keep everyone distracted. They take credit for successes and pivot the blame for failures onto others. Because they lack a conscience, they don't feel the "cringe" or guilt that would stop a normal person from lying to a colleague’s face.
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Abandonment. Once the patron is no longer useful or the company is onto them, the snake leaves. Usually with a massive severance package or a glowing recommendation for their next "victim" company. They leave behind a "psychological graveyard." Teams are broken. Morale is zero.
Why Do Companies Fall For It?
Honestly? Because we’re suckers for "leadership qualities."
We’ve been conditioned to think that a great leader should be fearless and dominant. When a psychopath shows up and says, "I can fix this company in six months," we don't see a red flag. We see a savior. Babiak’s research shows that the organizational "noise" of mergers, acquisitions, and rapid growth provides the perfect cover. In a stable company, a snake is easy to spot. In a chaotic one, they just look like a "change agent."
The "B-Scan" and Quantifying the Problem
One of the most significant contributions of the Snakes in Suits book is the development of the B-Scan. This is a research tool (the Business Scan) designed to identify psychopathic traits in a professional setting. It doesn't look for "evil." It looks for specific behavioral clusters:
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- Social manipulation: Using charm to deceive.
- Irresponsibility: Ignoring rules and blaming others.
- Impulsivity: Taking massive risks with other people's money.
- Affective poverty: A total lack of genuine empathy or remorse.
It’s important to understand that psychopathy is a spectrum. Not every jerk in the office is a psychopath. Most are just... jerks. But the clinical psychopath represents a tiny percentage of the population (about 1%) that causes a disproportionate amount of damage. In the upper echelons of corporate leadership, some studies suggest that percentage might be four or five times higher.
Surviving the Snake: Practical Next Steps
If you realize your boss or a close colleague fits the description in Snakes in Suits, you need a survival strategy. You aren't going to "fix" them. They don't have a "wound" you can heal with kindness. They have a different brain structure.
- Document everything. Snakes thrive in the "he-said, she-said" gray area. Keep a paper trail of every instruction, every promise, and every critique. Confirm verbal conversations via email immediately. "Just to confirm our talk earlier, you've asked me to..."
- Stop being a "pawn." Psychopaths look for people they can exploit. If you are overly agreeable or desperate for their approval, you are a target. Set firm, professional boundaries. Be "boring." If they can't get an emotional reaction or an easy win out of you, they’ll move on to someone else.
- Build your own tribe. Isolation is a snake's greatest weapon. They will try to turn you against your peers. Resist this. Maintain strong, transparent relationships with your coworkers. If everyone is talking to each other, the snake can't tell different lies to different people.
- Know when to walk. Honestly, if a corporate psychopath has the ear of the CEO, you probably won't win. The cost to your mental health isn't worth it. Start looking for a new role before the "abandonment" phase kicks in and your reputation is collateral damage.
The Snakes in Suits book is a wake-up call. It reminds us that the person in the expensive suit might not be a high-performer—they might just be a very talented actor. Understanding the "predatory" nature of corporate psychopathy is the only way to protect yourself and your organization from the inevitable fallout.
Check your HR policies. Look at your "high-potential" leadership programs. Are you rewarding results, or are you rewarding the appearance of results? If it's the latter, you might already have a few snakes in the grass.
To apply this knowledge immediately, start by auditing your current work environment for "siloed" communication. If information is being funneled through one charismatic person who seems to be the only link between departments, verify their claims independently. Cross-reference their reported successes with actual data and feedback from the ground level. Realizing that empathy is a weakness to a predator allows you to stop using emotional appeals and start using cold, hard evidence as your primary defense mechanism.