Aside from the unpleasantness, bad cultures are
also bad for your career. Successful people tend to work for winners, and a
good culture has been shown to drive long term financial performance. Work for
a happy place, and you’ll likely do better in life.
However,
that brings up a question. How can you know anything about a company’s culture
when you only go for a single interview?
Heading under below of an organization's cultural problems.
1. They make a big
deal out of the Ping-Pong table.
Having a Ping-Pong
table is fine; bragging about one is not.
Why?
The corporate world has somehow equated owning one with having a fun
loving-culture. If your potential employers emphasize theirs, it may be a sign
they’re checking off boxes rather than giving their employees what they really
want. 2.
The place is a dump.
Whenever
I walk into an office, I look along sight-lines. If I see boxes sitting in the
aisles and chairs piled up in meeting rooms, I know no one cares about the
place. And there is probably a good reason why. 3.
Only the leaders have offices.
We’re
always leery of a place where everyone has a cube except for the bosses. That
usually indicates a hierarchical structure in which management and employees
are at odds. 4.
No one talks about culture.
Companies
should try to sell you on their culture. If the person interviewing you only
wants to talk about your qualifications, ask yourself what she’s not telling
you about the work environment. 5.
Leadership demonstrates bad culture.
Culture
always flows from the top. You may not have a chance to meet senior management,
but you can probably track down a video of them. Your initial reaction may
speak volumes about how much you’ll enjoy working at the company. 6.
Your interviewer talks about excellence.
Every
organization strives to succeed. That’s a given. A company that emphasizes
excellence may also hold its employees to unachievable standards. Rather than
focusing on your job, you’ll be worrying about your job. 7.
It just seems weird.
A
happy workplace should hum. Some people should be up, moving around, and
talking to one another. They should not seem bored or stressed. So take a look
around, and ask yourself if the average person seems happy or not. 8.
The company values are posted on the wall.
If
you see this, don’t bother with the interview. Simply find the nearest exit and
walk through it. 9.
It’s five o’clock, and everyone is buried in work. If
you can, schedule your interview late. Five o’clock gives you a great opportunity
to see how a company manages the work-life balance. A few people working late
are fine, but some should be heading home. 10.
If they ask you if you have a question, ask this: “How
much time do you spend with your coworkers after 5 p.m., and doing what?” Good
answers include having a beer and playing softball. Bad answers include
anything to do with work, unless it happens only occasionally. A
lot of people would say that work should be a place for work and that these
days any job is a good one. Agreed.
Obviously you should get the job you can if
you’re having trouble finding one. But if you have a choice of employers, try
for one with a good culture. You’ll be happier, and your career will thank you.
In
fact, the only downside to a good culture is that you’ll never become famous
for ranting about your boss on Twitter. Then again, that 15 minutes is probably
best left to someone else.
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