An important lesson I've learned is to ask in the interviews "how is employee performance evaluated?"

If the response is blather about 360 peer review, be wary.

Also scan all available information about if they perform any stack ranking.

I worked at a place where managers would bring in other people just so they could meet their "must fire" quotas but keep their existing teams intact. I left shortly thereafter.

An organization must be able to identify and cope with true "non-performers" but when it turns into a global quota for all teams you're in the hunger-games.

The culture of a place radiates from upper management / C Suite; if they're sociopaths you end up with this sort of organization where certain types of people filter up.