93: The Devil Emails at Midnight: Unmasking Bad Bosses & Broken Systems with Mita Mallick

Embracing Only: Workplace Culture & Career Development for BIPOC Leaders

Episode Highlight: In this episode of the Embracing “Only” podcast, we welcome back bestselling author and corporate change-maker Mita Mallick. With her signature candor, Mita shares wisdom from her upcoming book The Devil Emails at Midnight: What Good Leaders Can Learn from Bad Bosses, which explores 13 “devil boss” archetypes, drawing on personal stories and real-life failures turned into lessons in leadership.

Mita is a Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author on a mission to fix what's broken in our workplaces. With a background spanning global brands like Unilever, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson, Mita brings deep insight into marketing, HR, and organizational transformation.

Key Discussion Points:

02:58 Why Good People Become Bad Bosses: Stress in the market, pressure from above, or personal issues at home can cause leaders to act out in harmful ways.

06:29 Beloved but Incompetent Leaders: Mediocre men keep getting promoted based on potential, while overqualified women of color are passed over.

12:30 Diversity Under Attack: As corporate DEI commitments backslide, Mita challenges companies to stand firm and urges employees to "vote with their wallets”.

16:48 Internal vs. External Consistency: If your external brand doesn't match your internal culture, expect to be called out.

21:39 Building a Personal Safety Net: Loyalty is dead. Women of color must protect themselves in workplaces that don’t always protect them.

29:08 Burnout & Overfunctioning: Women of color are told to "work twice as hard" to get half as far. This is exploitation masked as opportunity.

33:24 The Midnight Email Culture: What does it say about a company when leaders only respond between 10 PM and 1 AM?

In Summary: Mita Mallick encourages us to reimagine leadership in modern workplaces. She challenges leaders to prioritize coaching and development, create inclusive environments, and maintain genuine commitments to diversity and ethical practices.

Resources from this episode:

Find Mita's books here: https://www.mitamallick.com/book

Follow Mita on Linkedin or check out her website.

Check out our first episode with Mita here: https://embracingonly.com/episodes/debunking-corporate-myths-to-transform-your-workplace

If you happen to be a woman of color and you are looking for a community of like minded women, join Olivia here: https://www.mysistersshoulders.com/.

Ready to make a change?
→ If you are struggling to navigate your corporate career but are ambitious and have goals you want to accomplish quickly, Olivia is the coach for you. She can help you reach your goals.

Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.

→ If you are ready to transition out of Corporate and want to start building a profitable portfolio career as a business owner, board member or more, but you’re unsure of the next steps, Archita can guide you through a successful transition to entrepreneurship.

Reach out to her on

Ready to make a change?
→ Struggling with your corporate career but have big goals?
Reach out to Olivia on LinkedIn or visit oliviacream.com.
→ Ready to leave corporate or start a side venture? Archita can guide your next steps.
Reach out to her on LinkedIn or visit architafritz.com.