Why do you always feel a bit "incompatible" with the company? - Tiger Sniffing Network#
#Omnivore
Highlights#
These three indicators: the average length of meetings, the frequency of employee communication, and the noise decibels in the office. ⤴️ ^5626d4e0
Open and Closed
From the perspective of "where companies tend to spend money and effort". ⤴️ ^b6655966
Details and Results
First, whether employees' innovative behavior can receive sufficient resource support, including people, money, and business permissions?
Second, whether promoted employees have innovative and open characteristics?
Third, do failed innovators receive protection and respect from the company? ⤴️ ^ed064878
Open and Closed
In "competitive companies," employees are only responsible for their own work, if you want others to help you, think about the conditions for exchange; while in "cooperative companies," the corporate culture emphasizes teamwork and the principle of common interests, and requires employees to avoid internal conflicts as much as possible—employees who refuse to cooperate with colleagues will be considered lacking team spirit. ⤴️ ^4fa07e5b
Competitive and Harmonious
Why do you always feel a bit "incompatible" with the company?#
This article introduces four dimensions of corporate personality: introverted and extroverted, detail-oriented and result-oriented, open and closed, competitive and harmonious. By analyzing these four dimensions, the author helps readers understand their suitable corporate personality types in order to choose a better work environment.
• Corporate personality can be divided into introverted and extroverted, detail-oriented and result-oriented, open and closed, competitive and harmonious.
• Understanding corporate personality helps in choosing a suitable work environment and improves work efficiency and satisfaction.
• Corporate personality is related to individual personality, and people with different personality types are suitable for different types of companies.
I. The first dimension of corporate personality: introverted and extroverted
The difference between two companies with identical business products can be felt the moment you step into their offices.
In the first company, a large office with hundreds of people, the noise level is below 15 decibels, everyone is focused on their own work, communication is done only through chat tools, and even a slightly louder voice attracts attention.
In the other company, one-third of the people are in meetings, one-third leave their seats to communicate with others, and the remaining one-third are relatively lazy, still relying on shouting for communication.
I call them "introverted companies and extroverted companies," inspired by a friend. He once used this dimension to describe the differences between two companies: "For example, the difference between Company A and Company B is like the difference between introverted people and extroverted people."
This statement enlightened me. Just as individuals can be introverted or extroverted, companies can also have these characteristics. In a previous article of mine, "The Time for 'Deep Work' Determines the Size of Achievements," I discussed the characteristics of these two types of companies using examples of "meeting culture" and "communication culture."
In an "extroverted company," it is natural for others to seek your communication when they encounter problems, and if you don't cooperate, it means you lack team spirit. In an "introverted company," everyone is focused on solving their own problems first, and if they can't solve them, seeking help from others seems like a big favor.
In an "extroverted company," most employees spend more time on discussions, communication, and persuading others than on analytical and contemplative work. In contrast, employees in "introverted companies" are the opposite.
Introverted companies see meetings as a "must-have" task because they value individual independent analysis and thinking abilities rather than collective communication and collision. Therefore, introverted companies respect employees' workspaces and avoid interfering too much in their personal lives.
Many companies with an engineering culture belong to this category.
Of course, most large companies do not clearly lean towards extroversion or introversion, but they tend to have some inclination.
What's the use of knowing this? It's simple, everyone is best suited to work in a company that matches their personality. If you are accustomed to working in a "deep thinking" manner, it is best to stay in an "introverted company." If you enjoy discussing and communicating with others, persuading others, and prefer a team communication atmosphere, or if you are afraid of working alone, then an "extroverted company" is more suitable for you.
The method to distinguish between these two types of companies is also simple. You will know after working for a day, just pay attention to these three indicators: the average length of meetings, the frequency of employee communication, and the noise decibels in the office.
From the perspective of introversion and extroversion, I thought of the MBTI personality classification method that everyone has been enthusiastic about in recent years. It has four pairs of personality dimensions. So, besides the difference between introversion and extroversion, do companies have three other pairs of "personality" dimensions?
II. The second dimension of corporate personality: detail-oriented and result-oriented
The second important aspect of a company's "personality" is whether it focuses more on "perfect details" or "satisfactory results."
"Details determine success or failure" is a slogan that has been overused by companies. Someone complained to me: Today, when I was copying documents, they were slightly crooked, and I was scolded by my boss for not paying attention to details. Then I realized that everyone's desks in the company were neat except mine.
Of course, having a neat office does not necessarily mean it is a "detail-oriented" company. It may be that the management culture of the managers values surface efforts but is actually chaotic.
Detail-oriented management based on details is a scientific management method. To distinguish between "detail-oriented companies" and "efficiency-oriented companies," you need to look at it from the perspective of "where companies tend to spend money and effort."
For example, in a "detail-oriented" company, employees are required to list their monthly plans at the beginning of each month, with specific quantifiable goals. Then, they report the progress of their work in daily meetings and communicate any problems they encounter.
In contrast, "80/20" management focuses only on the most important tasks, and KPIs only assess the most important one. This type of management is the most efficient.
The difference between these two types of companies is generally based on the industry. In some mature industries, "detail-oriented" companies are more likely to appear because efficiency in the industry cannot be significantly improved, and the only way is through fine management to "squeeze out" the potential of employees. Another type is industries that require very rigorous business requirements, such as engineering and research and development companies, which also pay more attention to details.
However, even in the same industry, different companies have different levels of attention to details.
In a "detail-oriented" company, employees often spend one-third of their time completing their work, another one-third confirming work details with colleagues and clients, and the remaining one-third "decorating" their work results.
For those employees who value details, are highly planned, self-disciplined, and pursue perfection, this type of company is the most suitable. It is also suitable for those who are accustomed to "passive work."
On the other hand, the biggest advantage of a "result-oriented" company is autonomy. Employees can independently set their own schedules, as long as they complete the tasks in the end, the process will not be excessively interfered with, and no one will care if your documents are copied crooked or if your desk is messy.
This type of company is naturally more suitable for those who do not like to be bound by too many rules. But since it is a "result-oriented company," the most important evaluation criterion is the ratio of the final result to the resources consumed. Working here also requires you to have a strong ability for self-reflection and self-improvement—without anyone correcting your mistakes during the process, you will miss the opportunity to make up for them until the moment you are kicked out, and you won't even know what you did wrong.
These two types of corporate personalities, detail-oriented and result-oriented, correspond to the "Judging J" and "Perceiving P" in MBTI, mainly because:
J-type personalities prefer to act according to plans and do not like "unexpected surprises." They advocate detailed management and are goal-oriented. They are more in line with the requirements of detail-oriented companies.
P-type personalities are adaptable and prefer to go with the flow. They have strong adaptability and pursue self-satisfaction. They are more in line with the requirements of result-oriented companies.
III. The third dimension of corporate personality: open and closed
Suppose there are two directions for upgrading a new product: the first one is safer, the market is more defined, but there are many competitors; the second one is more innovative, more challenging, but belongs to a blue ocean without competitors. Which direction do you think your company is willing to try?
The answer to this question represents the third dimension of corporate personality: open and closed.
Just as in reality, some people prefer adventure while others prefer practicality, some companies are always trying to "stir things up." As soon as their products gain a foothold, they want to upgrade and earn higher profits. As soon as the market opens up, they are eager to launch new products.
"Open innovation" has become something that all companies talk about. Leaders always say, "Dare to innovate, don't be afraid of failure." But the real criteria for evaluating a company's "openness and closedness" are as mentioned earlier, not by slogans but by looking at the money—
First, whether employees' innovative behavior can receive sufficient resource support, including people, money, and business permissions?
Second, whether promoted employees have innovative and open characteristics?
Third, do failed innovators receive protection and respect from the company?
When these three criteria are presented, most companies become "pseudo-open companies." In fact, this is not a bad thing. "Openness" means increased management difficulty, and "innovation" means increased risk of failure. In the early stages of the market, innovation means huge investment and long waiting times. From the beginning, most companies are destined to fail.
Therefore, many companies prioritize "not making mistakes" as their primary business goal and "waiting for competitors to make mistakes" as their primary competitive strategy. They emphasize a conservative and unchanging corporate spirit. This is the "closed" corporate personality, with banks being the most typical example.
Most people have the impression that banks are conservative. There is a Japanese drama called "Hanzawa Naoki" that criticizes banks for "giving umbrellas on sunny days and taking them back on rainy days." In fact, banks hold fixed interest income but bear the risk of loan principal loss. This has developed a conservative and prudent management style—keep in mind that most bankrupt banks died from aggressive and risky business expansion, not from being conservative and not seeking progress.
Therefore, open and closed, innovation and conservatism are just the personalities of companies, and there is no right or wrong. But for employees, a daring employee will not stay long in a conservative company, and a stable employee will also find it difficult to be valued in an innovative and changing company.
To judge whether a company is open or closed, you don't need to enter the company, just look at the products and businesses created with real money. On the contrary, once you enter the company, you may be easily fooled by the boss's slogans.
Open and closed, these two types of corporate personalities correspond to the "Intuition N" and "Sensing S" in MBTI, mainly because:
N-type personalities are accustomed to processing received information with intuition. They think, associate, speculate, and judge... Some of them are enthusiastic about finding the rules of things, and some are fascinated by those whimsical ideas. They are more in line with the innovation requirements of open companies.
S-type personalities are satisfied with the information received by their senses. They hear, see, smell, touch... They are very concerned about the details of their surroundings, value experience, and like to collect data to illustrate problems. They are more in line with the stability requirements of closed companies.
IV. The fourth dimension of corporate personality: competitive and harmonious
"Competition" is a good thing for modern companies. However, many companies encounter conflicts between internal competition and teamwork in management.
Suppose a project is assigned to Employee A, but during the execution process, Employee A wants help from Employee B and Employee C. However, Employee B and Employee C refuse to help, citing "it's none of my business." In this case, Employee A goes to their supervisor, hoping for intervention.
At this point, the degree of coordination by the supervisor and the level of cooperation between the two employees represent whether the company is a "competitive company" or a "harmonious company."
In "competitive companies," employees are only responsible for their own work. If you want others to help you, think about the conditions for exchange. In "cooperative companies," the corporate culture emphasizes teamwork and the principle of common interests, requiring employees to avoid internal conflicts as much as possible—employees who refuse to cooperate with colleagues will be considered lacking team spirit.
All companies have internal competition to some extent. Companies hope to improve employees' combat effectiveness through competition, but with competition comes internal consumption, and the biggest cost is the impact on team culture.
Many companies encourage competition and a "wolf culture" on the surface but require employees to have a spirit of teamwork and dedication. They also require both "competition" and "harmony," two opposing personality dimensions. The result is likely to be the "split personality" of the company.
People are the same. Some people do not like the internal conflicts caused by competition and feel insecure working in such an atmosphere. Others do not like the hypocritical and harmonious team culture and believe they have no reason to help those who are less capable.
For individuals with strong personalities in this dimension, the best way is not to adapt to the environment but to find a company that is "compatible" with you.
Competitive and harmonious, these two types of corporate personalities correspond to the "Thinking T" and "Feeling F" in MBTI, mainly because:
F-type personalities consider values and personal emotional factors more in their work, which is more conducive to communication and more in line with the requirements of harmonious companies.
T-type personalities consider goals and principles more in their work, which is more conducive to self-discipline and more in line with the requirements of competitive companies.
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