Company secret: how to find your corporate culture

“Work sucked. I can’t see the faces of my colleagues. I’m afraid of a call from my boss. Such confessions are often heard in the therapist’s office or in a coaching session. Many of those who complain about the loss of interest and motivation cannot understand at what point their enthusiasm turned into apathy, their favorite work became disgusting, and the desire to develop gave way to anxiety and a sense of instability in their situation.

If at first we were full of strength and optimism, what made us go on the defensive? Often the problem lies in the plane of corporate culture – in those explicit or implicit “rules of the game” that we accept when joining the organization. Why do we remember some companies with gratitude and warmth, while others with longing and hatred?

What are we complaining about?

“Ordinary employees rarely ask themselves what the company’s corporate culture is like,” says Olga Mukhina, organizational development consultant and business coach. – Rather, they will think about how comfortable it will be for them to work. Most often one hears such complaints: “We are not valued, our opinion is not interested, we are simply given instructions from above.”

This is not surprising: according to Olga Mukhina, most Russian companies are organized strictly hierarchically, they are distinguished by strict regulation and control. If in Western culture an ordinary employee can enter into correspondence with the boss of another department or even with the first person of the company, then in Russia the bosses often deliberately fence themselves off from their subordinates. There are even separate floors for senior management, where access is denied to most employees.

The harder the weaker

This description of Russian characteristics coincides almost verbatim with the definition of a weak organizational culture formulated in the 1980s by the German psychologist Rolf Rüttinger. He defined the weakness and strength of culture by how much it is able to show flexibility, respond to internal and external signals, how much freedom it has.

In weak cultures, disagreement with superiors or even doubts about the correctness of their decisions are not allowed. The initiative cannot be discussed with a colleague – only with the immediate supervisor. And he, in turn, will not give consent until he informs even higher. Promising proposals lie under a bushel for months and rarely reach the implementation stage. Therefore, Rüttinger considered such cultures unviable: they do not “fit into turns” well and eventually become obsolete.

Although such a company can survive for a while, working in it becomes torture. Moreover, not only the most active suffer: anyone can become a victim of intrigue or the wrath of a tyrant boss. Breaking the rules is punishable, but the rules themselves can suddenly change. It is not always clear what caused this or that ban. In an atmosphere of secrets, a “shadow market” of information flourishes: gossip and rumors. “A person in such a system is haunted by the feeling that he is doing something wrong,” comments existential psychologist Svetlana Krivtsova. – He always feels guilty and flawed. As a result, helplessness develops: I won’t even try, nothing will work out.

How do you know if you’re in a company with a weak culture? “It is immediately noticeable if you look at the faces of employees, talk to them,” explains Svetlana Krivtsova. − If people live in an atmosphere where their initiative is blocked, they look apathetic, indifferent. When there is a lot of fear in the system, it makes it lifeless.”

Another “litmus test” is a stressful situation. “In stress, as a rule, the worst features of both a person and an organization appear,” the psychologist notes. “The time pressure, the annual report, a major oversight that needs to be urgently resolved, allow us to understand how it is customary to build working relationships in this team.” If they try to hide the mistake with all their might, find a “scapegoat”, if superiors shift responsibility to subordinates, and they, in turn, are afraid to honestly report the true extent of the problems, most likely, you have an example of a weak culture.

Benefits of openness

In contrast to a weak culture, a strong one is not afraid of openness, freedom and the risk associated with it. “Where the rules are obvious and vowel, they can always be called into question and even changed if they are unacceptable,” Svetlana Krivtsova reflects. “Informal communication and informal access to superiors create a spirit of freedom.” Open culture companies may have complex internal organization, but there are no superfluous links.

Another feature of such companies is the involvement of employees in a common cause. “In many companies, it is customary to say: this is my patrimony, and everything else does not concern me,” says Olga Mukhina. “But there are examples of companies in which employees are encouraged to go beyond their narrow tasks if it is done in the interests of the company. For example, any employee may have the right to stop the conveyor, even if he does not work in production, but sees that something “wrong” is happening. He does not need to call anyone, report to anyone – he has the right to make a decision himself.

A company’s attitude towards the mistakes of its employees is another factor that makes the culture strong and resilient. “In companies with a friendly culture, they believe that mistakes are experience,” emphasizes Olga Mukhina.

Relationships or tasks?

But in itself, working in a company with a strong culture is not yet a guarantee that we will be able to realize ourselves there. Much depends on which side of the workflow is more important to us. “There are people who are predominantly task-oriented,” explains Svetlana Krivtsova. – These are people-creators, people-creators. They may not be very good at relationships, but they are good at the material. First of all, they are interested in whether they will be given a truly difficult and interesting task.

There are those among us for whom relationships are a priority. They want to be treated politely so they don’t feel alone. For them, work is a place where it is pleasant to be, and colleagues with whom you can talk.”

Relationship-oriented companies value conflict resolution, compliance, and mutual assistance. Where the efficiency of problem solving is in the first place, less attention is paid to personal comfort. Managers encourage internal competition and may arrange competition between workers. However, according to Olga Mukhina, this division is conditional. “Results-driven companies learn over time that they need to build relationships,” she says. “And sometimes a newcomer cannot work effectively until he passes the test of trust and joins the team.”

To truly find our place, we have to understand what we expect from work. Different motivations speak in us, desires change depending on life circumstances, age and experience.

Work on a life project

If you decide to grow within one company, pay attention to the evaluation system. Its criteria must be objective. “It is important that managers give feedback regularly,” explains Olga Mukhina. It should not be just assessments, but a constant dialogue with employees. “A good leader is one who feels people,” adds Svetlana Krivtsova. – He keeps track of what is happening with his subordinates, and asks himself: is this person going to complete this task today? And tomorrow?”

Options for professional and career growth may be different. This process is not always linear. In some companies, specialists, having gained experience and proved their success, automatically become managers. In others, there are development centers where you can get additional skills in managing people. In the most advanced organizations, they realize that it is not enough to find good employees, you need to help them grow. “Such companies become universities, and work experience in them is valued more than a regular diploma,” emphasizes Svetlana Krivtsova.

Choosing a place of work is also a way of our self-determination. In this atmosphere, with these people, we have to spend the next three, five, ten years. To find your way, “it is important not only to be aware of your goals and opportunities, but also to understand how work fits into our personal life project,” concludes Svetlana Krivtsova. Also, listen to your intuition. The desire to work disappears not for any one reason, but because the daily “dislikes” become more than “likes”. If we focus only on “likes”, we will not understand what is stopping us.”