What Tech Giants Teach Us about Modern Office Culture

9 years ago | Posted in: Technology | 3970 Views

Work culture represents the values, norms, systems, symbols, beliefs, habits, and overall behavior of people in the workplace.

A strong culture isn’t something that can be developed on its own or overnight for that matter. You have to breed in and nurture it into your business settings. A “strong” culture is a culture that all workers can identify with, and it should be something that helps to motivate them and develop loyalty towards their organizations.

So, what does a strong work culture look like in reality? We could study the largest tech giants and how well they have managed to keep their cultures strong and well bred. Microsoft, Apple, Google and Facebook are such organizations that must have done well to create the right culture with hundreds of employees enjoying their day to day work at such amazing workplaces.

Let’s dig deep to find out what a strong work culture means to them and whether or not their employees portray that level of loyalty every company only dreams of.

  • Facebook: At first, Facebook had a bad reputation for having a political workplace and amateurish management (yeah, we all watched social network).However, in time, Facebook fixed the issue with a professional hiring team and talented recruiters.

 

Facebook allows its workers flexible timings and even the work-from-home options. The environment is quite a social one and there are no cubicles. The culture at Facebook is an open one where employees can discuss ideas and share information easily. For those who prefer privacy, the open environment can be a little disruptive.

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  • Apple: Apple is known to be very secretive about pretty much everything, including what goes on inside. Brandon Carson, a contractor at Apple says, “They demand and desire a collaborative atmosphere.” This means that your work has to be liked and approved by every member of your team. He says that it’s a great way to keep checks and balances. Many employees say that the company culture is quite a strict one. Cubicles are designed to prefer individuality and peace. After all, the brand image and reputation is the first priority for Apple.
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  • Microsoft: The enormous tech giant, Microsoft, is known to support work/life balance. Many employees share their stories about Microsoft’s “open culture”. You can even wear jeans or shorts in the workplace (unless, of course, you’re in the HR department). The workplace environment is at-large, a friendly one. However,the level of loyalty in this organization suffers because of low pay and politics.
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  • Google: Now, this company is quite accomplished when it comes to building the perfect workplace culture to promote a strong sense of values and beliefs in line with that of the corporation. According to spokesman Jordan Newman, Google has a philosophy “to create the happiest, most productive workplace in the world”.

The employees there get to design their own desks and that means that they can include anything they want at their workplace. You’ll see cafes, coffee bars, kitchens (that serve free breakfast), terraces and all kinds of snacks. The place is like a dream come true. The idea is to push the boundaries of a typical workplace and promote creativity.

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In conclusion:

All in all, it seems as though the older tech giants are a bit lacking in their workplace culture. While Apple’s culture is a strict one that encourages individuality, Microsoft and Facebook cultures breed openness and information flow.

Personally,I feel that the best among the above in developing a strong cultureis Google who strikes a perfect balance between the two different perspectives. It has developed a very “people culture” by giving the employees the authority to choose their work environment themselves. Whether you want a closed cubicle or an open one is entirely up to you. Also, they managed to do a great job of aligning the corporate culture of creativity andimagination by portraying it in the rest of the areas which the employees didn’t choose: colorful kitchens, cafes, terraces, and other whacky places you won’t normally find in other offices.

 

 

About Author:

Skornia Alison works as a social media analyst for Essay Valley that offers essay writing help. Due to her expertise in the field, she’s into exploring and analyzing you trends and techniques on how digital social connectivity can be best put to use in diverse markets.

 

 

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