Fit Into the Organization 2: Fit into Corporate Cultures

This continues our series on how fitting in can help you get the biggest raises & better jobs

Tom, an outstanding software project manager, maintained a very solid, detail-oriented approach to life. He carefully weighed his words and thoughts. He spoke hesitantly, softly, and deliberately. He stumbled over his thoughts when pressed to think or speak quickly. These traits served him quite well as a project manager. His quality benefitted by his attention to detail. Unfortunately, he accepted a job with one of the new SAAS companies. Their culture thrived on creative chaos and spur-of-the-moment innovations. Tom could not fit in to that culture and lost his job within 5 months.

Different Corporate Cultures

The Sergey Group defines corporate culture as “the collective way we do things around here.” They continue: “It involves a learned system of meanings which guide our perceptions, understanding of events, and what we pay attention to…It consists of the created and shared beliefs, values, and glue that holds an organization together, and it also involves the very nature of the organization. Culture is about individuals in a group sharing patterns of behavior.”

Every corporation or organization maintains a distinctive and unique culture. Some cultures include:

• Slow moving, deliberate cultures that consider every option before proceeding
• Quick, impetuous organizations that act on the spur of the moment
• Innovative, spontaneous cultures that value and reward creativity
• Structured, well-organized cultures that every person has a purpose and place
• Acquisitive, growing cultures that borrow or buy other companies to expand

Identify Your Corporate Culture

You must identify the culture of your work team or organization in order to fit in. Trying to fit into a culture that contradicts your personal values and personality creates personal conflicts that will leave you unhappy or dissatisfied.

You can discover the culture from

• Observe how people interact, the layout of the workstations, and types of meetings
• Learn from your mentor and network within the company
• Listen to informal & formal communications
• Ask insightful, thoughtful, and inoffensive questions

Friday we discuss how to visually fit in to your work team, organization, and company