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i've noticed these "culture" posts tend to come from people trying to set it, not people trying to live within it. in my experience typical high-tech R&D depar

by unshift 16y ago

i've noticed these "culture" posts tend to come from people trying to set it, not people trying to live within it. in my experience typical high-tech R&D department workplace culture is one of nerds who are technically extremely competent, but communication issues are very common and people tend to be passive-aggressive. one-upsmanship abounds. the culture expects long hours for no overtime, the "i'm here for a paycheck" attitude is frowned upon, and the work is not anywhere as cool as corporate propaganda makes it out to be. i may be jaded but i don't see how some higher-up preaching about "aligning interests" and "being passionate" is actually affecting any real day-to-day issues. a more honest article might be about hiring people who are similar to existing employees, in terms of personality and priorities. maybe you only want to hire people who like to work 24/7, or maybe people who want to "change the world" through gluing together webservice APIs, or maybe you just want warm bodies to fill chairs.* but i guess there's no patting yourself on the back there and it doesn't sound as cool as screening for "culture-fit". * not a comment on wealthfront. I don't know what they do or how they operate. just a general observation.

bioh42_2 16y ago
I'm hoping passive aggressiveness and lack of communication is not typical of high-tech or R&D. I have no trouble believing it is common and maybe even typical of BIG companies, even if you're not in the R&D department. I have worked for large high tech corporations and while there were death-marches at least there wasn't a crippling lack of communication and passive aggression. Sadly I am currently experiencing both of the latter at another Big Co's R&D department. But I have found startups and small businesses to be refreshingly full of passion and free of BS. This is why my thoughts revolve around working either for myself or at least partly for myself as a share holder in a startup.
mattbaker 16y ago
I understand the sentiment. Speaking as a relatively new employee however (< 6mo) I can say Wealthfront practices what they preach. Communication here has been really incredible, discussions are frank and I haven't seen a single passive-aggressive act since joining. I do think the culture is important, it changes the way we work as a team for the better. If that's a day-to-day issue I don't know what is. I understand this might just come off as another guy at Wealthfront drinking the kool-aid but I mean it sincerely. The people here are as adept at teamwork and communication as they are software. That's why I upvoted the post, not to tow the company line but because I think Pascal's article is relevant and legitimately devoid of bullshit. Of course, YMMV!

by unshift 16y ago

bioh42_2 16y ago

I'm hoping passive aggressiveness and lack of communication is not typical of high-tech or R&D. I have no trouble believing it is common and maybe even typical of BIG companies, even if you're not in the R&D department. I have worked for large high tech corporations and while there were death-marches at least there wasn't a crippling lack of communication and passive aggression. Sadly I am currently experiencing both of the latter at another Big Co's R&D department. But I have found startups and small businesses to be refreshingly full of passion and free of BS. This is why my thoughts revolve around working either for myself or at least partly for myself as a share holder in a startup.

mattbaker 16y ago

I understand the sentiment. Speaking as a relatively new employee however (< 6mo) I can say Wealthfront practices what they preach. Communication here has been really incredible, discussions are frank and I haven't seen a single passive-aggressive act since joining. I do think the culture is important, it changes the way we work as a team for the better. If that's a day-to-day issue I don't know what is. I understand this might just come off as another guy at Wealthfront drinking the kool-aid but I mean it sincerely. The people here are as adept at teamwork and communication as they are software. That's why I upvoted the post, not to tow the company line but because I think Pascal's article is relevant and legitimately devoid of bullshit. Of course, YMMV!