Am I in the wrong company culture?

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You know when you’ve bought new shoes which looked great and fitted perfectly in the shop, only to find that they have pinched, rubbed, and slowly given you a nasty blister ever since? Well this is how you feel about your current job. You were really sold on the role and the company in the interview, hence why you accepted the job offer. And yet ever since joining, something doesn’t feel right.

At first you thought maybe it was the role, but you still enjoy what you do, and you’re good at it. No, it’s something about the environment you’re working in, something less tangible. You can’t quite put your finger on it.

You might be facing a personality clash with your company culture, but how can you tell and what should you do next?

You don’t feel part of the “in-group”
Usually you are an outgoing, sociable and chatty person who is more than capable of making friends at work. And yet, in this job, you can sometimes go an entire week without having a proper conversation with someone (or at least one that isn’t about work).

The problem is, unlike in previous jobs, you just don’t feel confident socialising with these new colleagues because you don’t feel part of the “in-group”. You avoid making jokes and adding to the conversation for fear of saying the wrong thing, and half the time you aren’t invited to join in anyway. Consequently you keep your head down, you eat lunch alone, you avoid team outings, and in truth, working at this company has become quite a lonely, isolated existence.

If this sounds familiar, then I would class this as the first sign that you are in the wrong company culture. Whilst everybody is different, and you can’t necessarily click with everybody, the right company culture would make you feel welcome.

It’s not just personal
It’s one thing to feel isolated on a personal level, but you also feel left out in a professional capacity. You find it hard to get your ideas across to colleagues in meetings, and you have noticed that people either disagree with you, or worse, ignore you altogether. As such, you have avoided speaking up completely, which you know is damaging to your career progression.

Nobody should feel isolated at work. If you do, then this boils down to the fact that you aren’t in an open company culture where all ideas are embraced and everybody has an equal chance to get their voice heard by senior management. These types of inclusive work cultures do exist, you just need to find one.

You aren’t motivated to do a good job
As I said at the beginning, you love what you do. Anyone who knows you would say you are diligent, passionate, and that you take pride in your work. And yet with this position, your motivation levels have hit rock bottom. Why is this? If it’s any of the below reasons, then this is symptomatic of being in the wrong company culture:

You feel uninspired by senior management, and all of your colleagues for that matter
The company don’t seem to recognise, reward or celebrate success, at least not in the way you would like
Your work ethos is not aligned to your employer’s. Either everybody works too much, or too little
The company don’t seem very invested in your career development and lifelong learning
You no longer care about the values, purpose and overall vision of the company, or the part you play. In fact, you wouldn’t care if they went under tomorrow
A combination of the above is enough to make anyone feel apathetic at work. What’s worse, is that this is now impacting your performance, and could hinder your longer term career goals.

What to do next
Like I said, the company culture is the personality of the company, and you can’t get on with every single personality, therefore you won’t fit in with every company culture. Therefore it’s important that you aren’t too hard on yourself, but treat this as a learning curve, and think carefully about the kind of culture you will fit into before making your next move.

Identify the type of culture you do want to work in, from how inclusive they are, to how they progress their employees and recognise success. Pinpoint everything you don’t like about this company, and how your next one will be different
Talk to your recruiter – share your ideals as well as your overall career goals with them. They will have a rich client database and a good understanding of the personality of these companies. I would also advise reaching out to your professional and personal connections to see if they have any recommendations

Before interviews, check out the company’s social media page and online reviews -these can give a good indication of company culture
During interviews, look for clues about the company culture, for example, how the interviewer answers the question: “How would you describe the team dynamic?”

You wouldn’t choose to wear ill-fitting shoes every day, so why put up with a poor cultural fit? You deserve to feel a sense of belonging to your organisation, for the sake of your career progression and day to day happiness. So get out there and find a company culture that does embrace your values, work ethos and personality type, and just watch yourself thrive!

About to start your job search? Reading our job searching tips will help ensure it’s a success:

4 things your recruiter needs to know about you

1. Why you are looking for a new opportunity
Your reasons for wanting to leave a role could be anything; the culture, the lack of progression opportunities, your boss’s management style, the company size or aspects of the role itself. Whatever it is, I would advise that you relay this information in a positive and professional way. For example, instead of saying “I can’t stand my boss. They hover over me every second of the day and watch my every move” instead, you could say “I prefer to be given more autonomy in my role, and be trusted to get on with the task in hand.”

The recruiter will keep this information confidential, using it only to eliminate unsuitable roles that they may have otherwise offered to you.

2. Your ideal job description
Now, onto what you do want from your next opportunity. What you do on a daily basis largely impacts upon your personal and professional wellbeing. So what would your ideal job description look like? I would advise that you factor in the below:

Your key responsibilities
Write down the key responsibilities of your ideal role, based upon what you enjoy about your current role as well as in previous jobs. You should also let the recruiter know how much you want to progress within your perfect role, and how this fits with your wider career goals.

Your strengths and weaknesses
Next, be clear on what your unique selling points are, identifying the hard and soft skills which suit your hypothetical responsibilities, and the areas in which you may need to upskill. Your recruiter can advise you on how to bridge any skills gaps, and may know of opportunities that can support you in doing this.

3. Your ideal company
Everybody’s definition of a great place to work will differ, and yours will be unique. However, I advise that you consider the below when building your criteria for the ideal work environment:

Company size and scale
Perhaps you want to stay within a large global organisation where you communicate with businesses overseas, gradually working your way up the long corporate ladder. Maybe you like the idea of working for a start-up or an SME, where you will have a lot of responsibility and exposure to influential stakeholders almost straight away. As I explain in a previous blog, there are pros of working for companies of a different size and scale. You just have to figure out which is right for you.

Industry
Which industries have you previously enjoyed working in, or which could tie in with your passions, hobbies and interests? You don’t have to pigeonhole yourself based on your previous industry experience – plenty of hiring managers will welcome industry outsiders.

Company culture
Which type of environment is your personality suited to? There’s no right or wrong answer here. If you are naturally talkative and outgoing, then explain that you need to be in a sociable lively workplace. If you are more introverted and prefer to keep yourself to yourself, that’s also fine – if this is the case, you may suit a quieter, more focused office environment. The key is to be true to yourself here, as poor cultural fit is one of the main reasons new hires don’t work out.

Practicalities
I’m talking about rewards, benefits, flexible working policies, location/minimum commuting times and salary. Have these clear in your mind and ready to relay during your job search. The great thing about using a recruiter is that they will have this information to hand, and can discuss on your behalf when negotiating a job offer.

Maybe you already have some companies in mind which you like the sound of working for? If not, do some research based on the above criteria, and take this list to your recruiter. They may be able to approach these companies speculatively and keep an eye out for suitable roles.

4. The “must haves” and the “nice to haves”
Now that you have the above elements clear in your mind, separate the ‘essentials’ from the ‘nice-to-haves’. Be realistic, some roles won’t tick every box, but certain factors will be key to your workplace wellbeing and career goals. Highlight the parts you could compromise on, so that your recruiter knows not to pass you up for a promising opportunity, just because it wasn’t 100 percent perfect.

Imagine jumping into a taxi and saying “take me anywhere please.” You’ll be taken for a ride and you may not like where you end up. Similarly, although we appreciate flexibility, if you don’t guide your recruiter then we can’t get you to the right destination.

Be honest, specific, and constructive. From the very first meeting onwards, ensure that you keep communication with your recruiter fluid and regular, updating them on your key criteria for the perfect opportunity. This is essential to building a relationship; ensuring that you are only put forward for the most suitable roles, not just now, but during every step of your career journey.

20 questions to ask yourself before starting your job search

1. Why am I looking to leave my current employer?

Think about this one carefully, because it will likely come up during the interview process, especially if you’ve not been at your current job that long. Why is it you feel you need to move on? Think about how a move would benefit you and your continuing professional development. Maybe your current employer doesn’t offer you any opportunities for promotion or maybe you have skills that are not being utilised. All of these are good reasons for a change in your job.

2. What do I enjoy most about my current role?

Consider the things you love about your job and put these things top of your wish list when looking for a new role. Maybe you’ve formed close working relationships with your colleagues in an open office environment or you relish your company’s international business trips. It goes without saying, then, that a new job without these benefits may well affect how much you enjoy going to work each day.

3. What can I offer? What is my USP?

Rather than just reeling off a list of positive adjectives, such as “hardworking” or “conscientious”, which, quite frankly, anyone can do, think instead of some concrete examples at work where you showed the qualities employers look for. Was there a time when you really added value to your company? How? Have you had a role in an international deal or changed a client’s life for the better? What sets you apart from all the others applying for this job?

4. What do I want from my career?

Do you want promotion, a better work-life balance or more variation in your work? Thinking about this carefully will allow you to pick and choose the most appropriate roles, for which to apply.

5. What skills do you want to develop and what experiences do you want to gain in the next five years?

Focus on the skills you wish to hone and experiences you wish to enjoy. If international travel is right up there for you, for instance, don’t waste time on applying for jobs that will keep you in one place.

6. Are promotional opportunities and progression important to me in a new role?

If they are, ensure you focus your search on organisations and companies that can offer you the best chance to fulfil your potential. If you’re not so bothered about climbing the career ladder, you can afford to be a bit more open to a range of job possibilities.

7. What am I willing to be flexible about?

Consider which elements you think you could be more flexible about in order to get the job you really want and those which you definitely aren’t. Sometimes a step back leads to a step forwards in the long run.

8. How far am I willing to commute?

This is a really important question, as so much of your work-life balance depends on your commute. Don’t underestimate the impact a long, tedious journey every day of the week can have on your emotional wellbeing and home life. If your current journey leaves you feeling frustrated, look for a job nearer home. Consider too the cost of fuel or public transport if you are looking at something further from your current place of work.

9. What benefits are most important to me?

Many companies offer fantastic perks, such as a company car, gym membership, private healthcare or even something as simple as dress-down Friday to make their employees feel valued. Think carefully about how much these benefits mean to you and how you would feel if you lost them.

10. What salary am I aiming at?

Be realistic when thinking about your salary expectations. It may be that you’d be prepared to take a pay cut to secure that dream job, but do make sure you can afford it. Create a spreadsheet of all of your outgoings and ensure you can afford to live comfortably on the salaries of any jobs you are looking at. In the same way, know your worth and don’t be afraid to aim for more highly paid jobs if you have the required skills and experience.

11. Would I be willing to relocate for the right role?

If you’re single and renting, relocating for the right job may be a no-brainer. Where partners and children are concerned, however, it may not be so easy to up sticks.

12. What kind of company culture would suit me best?

Do you enjoy working for a large organisation or do smaller, more dynamic companies suit you better? Would you sink or swim in a high-pressured, high-stress environment? Would you be bored in a gentler-paced job? Do you want to be customer-facing or working on the inside? All of these are important questions to consider.

13. What kind of work environment makes me most productive and fulfilled?

It may be that you thrive in a team, open-office environment and don’t like the idea of spending long days working on your own. You know yourself best, so do take your working style into account when looking at new roles.

14. What size of company do I want to work for? Try making a list of companies you would like to work for.

Working for huge multinational organisations can open the door to fantastic opportunities but then so can working for a small, vibrant local upstart. What are your priorities?

15. Where do I want to be, career-wise, in the next five years? What are the steps I need to make to get there?

Ambitions are important: they give you impetus and momentum in your work life. Think about what you would like to achieve and how your new job could help you do it.

16. How do I want and like to be managed?

Are you happier being trusted to get on with the job or do you prefer a more managed approach? Only apply for the jobs that will allow you to flourish in your preferred working style.

17. Is my CV and LinkedIn profile up to date?

Ensure your details are all up-to-date with your most recent employment and the skills and experience you have gained there. A well-structured LinkedIn page especially is a great way to make contacts and hear about new job vacancies.

18. How do I like to work the most: on my own or as part of a team?

Being comfortable and happy in the way you work is the best way to maximise your output and reach your potential. Work out whether you prefer to work as a team, at home, on your own or a bit of everything and use this information to focus your job search.

19. How am I going to manage the job search process?

Signing up to receive online alerts and using social media are great ways of researching companies and finding out about up-and-coming job vacancies. Follow your ideal companies on Twitter, like their Facebook page and take a look on Glassdoor to read reviews from current employees.

20. Who can help me in my job search?

Lastly, remember that recruitment consultants and agencies have always been a great way of finding the best job to fit your skills and experience. Also, in today’s tech-savvy world, your phone or tablet can also be a great source of information. Work out where your ideal jobs are going to be advertised and get online to get ahead.

How can you find a truly great place to work?

These perks are all well and good, but they need to supplement the more meaningful benefits of working for an organisation, from having a CEO who inspires you, to being given the progression opportunities you deserve for putting the work in. In this article, I will talk through the indicators of whether a company truly is, a great place to work, and how you can spot these companies when choosing your next employer.

Assess the company culture
Your alignment to a company’s culture will really determine your sense of belonging to that organisation, and how well you will fit in with the team.

A company’s social media page can usually provide a glimpse into the culture of the organisation, from the tone of voice used in their updates, to the pictures that they upload of team activities and social events. For instance, at Hays, we will upload images to Facebook and Instagram pages. These are often images of company outings, industry awards or team achievements. We like to think this showcases Hays’ motivated and sociable culture.

You should also look at the company website. Often, an organisation will have a page or two, usually under the careers section, which can give you an idea of what it’s like to work at this organisation. They may include their company values and vision here and even some personal anecdotes from existing employees. From what you can see, could you imagine integrating well within this type of environment? An appealing and suitable company culture is what makes an employer go from an ok place to work to a great place to work.

How engaging are the senior management?
The best leaders will know that in order to engage their current and potential employees, they will need to reach out to them personally, rather than hide behind closed doors and remain an enigma.

Look into the leaders of a business. Perhaps they write careers advice blogs online or get involved in industry discussions. Maybe they go to recruitment fairs, industry networking events and so forth. Either way, they have a strong, engaging public presence, and they would be inspiring to people to work for.

Get a feel for the progression opportunities
Would this company allow you to flourish to your full potential? The best places to work will want to help progress their staff and make sure that they are constantly developing.

Career progression opportunities are often one of the key criteria on many review sites such as Glassdoor, so do some digging around.  Some employers will be so enthusiastic about developing their staff, they will engineer a campaign around this, so keep an eye out on social media as well as the company website.

You can also research their existing employees on LinkedIn. How long have they all been with the business, and have they progressed much internally? If so, then that’s another indicator that this organisation will reward your efforts, and be a great place to work.

Look into their CSR strategy
A company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy is a reflection of how much they adhere to business and social ethics such as their diversity and inclusion policies, their approach to mental wellbeing in the workplace, as well as charity partnerships.

In my experience, a company with a sincere CSR policy will usually treat their staff well, and provide them with the opportunity to make a difference to society; whether it’s through helping implement a greener workplace initiative, or getting involved in charity activities. Have a look on the company website, social media and press releases for evidence of the kind of activity. Is their CSR strategy in line with your principles and morals? Do you feel like you could give something back if you were to work here?

Think about your work purpose
In a similar vein, during day to day life in this role, would you feel like your job had value? Would you have a reason for being there besides needing to pay the bills? Ultimately, would you feel like you were contributing to something bigger within your professional environment?

Whether it’s their vision, their products and services, or their contributions to the industry as a whole, you want to find a company which sparks your enthusiasm and makes you want to get involved in what they are doing. A truly great company to work for will give you an innate sense of purpose and a reason to get up in the morning.

Evaluate their work/life balance
Lastly, endeavour to find somewhere which provides a work/life balance. An organisation can provide all the freebies and incentives in the world, but if they expect you to stay in the office until 11 pm every night, it’s just not worth it.

Again, review sites such as Glassdoor are a good way to see what current and past employees have to say about working somewhere, and one of the main things they will often give feedback on is work/life balance.

In short, carefully assessing a company’s best attributes beyond the short term novelties is essential to not just your career journey, but also your wellbeing. You want to feel fulfilled, purposeful, and like you are constantly moving towards your goals, and within a culture which is right for you.  With this is mind, use the above criteria as a checklist during your job search and don’t settle for anything less than a truly great place to work.

The hidden ingredient to look for in your next employer

Perhaps, if you have an eye on building your career, you might look beyond the things you’ll experience personally and look at the strength of the company itself – its market share, profitability, brand reputation.

All these things are important, and a conversation with an expert recruitment consultant can help you to navigate your options. However there’s also one other factor which you should look for, yet few people do.

Innovation – it matters for everyone
The hidden ingredient is a company’s commitment to innovation. If you work in R&D or business strategy, this is an obvious attraction – the chance to build or steer something new – but it’s something that everyone should consider and look for in a potential employer, whether you work in accounting, sales or anything else.

1. Innovation predicts a company’s future
The pace of change and disruption within almost all industries continues to accelerate, driven by technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things. Even the strongest companies of today could find themselves as the Kodak of tomorrow if they fail to embrace innovation, with implications for all their employees.

2. The benefits spread widely
Even if you aren’t directly involved in innovation efforts at a company, they can make it easier to succeed in your own role (for example in sales, it is easier to close a deal with a product which is kept ahead of the competition). Innovation will also add interest and variety to your work (for example giving a finance team the fresh challenge of forecasting revenues for a new product line.)

3. It isn’t just about new products
The most successful companies recognise that innovation isn’t just about development teams, or customer-facing products and services, but that it’s an engine for improvement throughout an organisation. The opportunity to change things for the better matters for every job, whether you work in HR, marketing or customer services.

4. An opportunity to build your CV
To succeed in an interview, the ability to tell a compelling story about your experiences is critical, and stories about innovation are some of the strongest. When we play a role in creating something new, it becomes much easier to talk about the difference we personally made and the impact on the business, in contrast to simply overseeing something someone else set up.

5. Good innovation is built on strong culture
Many of the cultural attributes which are important for innovation are the same attributes that make for a great place to work – honesty and transparency, collegiate organisations, a sense of purpose and ambition.

Signs of Commitment
So, if you believe innovation is important, is it as simple as finding companies who talk about innovation being at their core? Unfortunately, in a world where so many companies aspire to be the new Apple, Google or Amazon, claims of commitment to innovation are everywhere, and “Proudly Stagnant”. The real evidence of innovation is not in what a business says, but rather what it does, so here are some signs to look for:

1. Clear processes
Despite the romantic notion of innovation as a mixture of art and chaos, in a business setting supporting processes are needed. Look for a clear picture of how ideas are collected, prioritised, tested and rolled out.

2. No ivory towers
Innovation is exciting, and some companies will have roles dedicated to it, with the result that innovative work can sometimes be (physically or culturally) walled off from the rest of the organisation. While time spent on innovation will certainly vary across the organisation, it should be everyone’s business to make a contribution

3. Customer closeness
One of the greatest stimuli for innovation in a business is input from customers. This doesn’t mean that customers should design new products (Henry Ford’s once said “if I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses”). However, understanding customer needs is key (a car is a good response to “what are the drawbacks of horses?”). Look for signs of customer feedback reaching all parts of the organisation.

4. Healthy attitudes to failure
“Fail fast, fail often” is a common mantra in Silicon Valley, but in practice can be as unhealthy as refusal to take any risk, if it is used to justify pulling the plug on promising ideas too early, or makes a team less hungry to succeed. The best attitude to failure is somewhere between these two extremes; looking for success, but accepting failure where lessons have been learned, and the right decisions to iterate or stop have been made along the way.

5. Protected investment
All businesses will have good years and leaner years – even a business which is growing consistently will see years where they beat their budget and years where that is tougher. You can learn a lot about how a business values innovation by looking at what happens to R&D spending in leaner years – is it the first thing to be cut to hit the numbers, or is it protected as far as practical?

What size company is right for you?

This sort of attitude is not uncommon. There is a glamorous thrill attached to mentioning a well-known and respected company as your employer, regardless of what your role actually is within the business.

There can indeed be many benefits to working in a large, successful, well-renowned organisation, but there is also the risk that the dazzle of the brand can blind workers to other aspects of their working situations. There is no one-size-fits-all business. Big and small sized businesses benefit different people in different ways. What role you are suited for depends largely on your personality, your ambitions and what stage of your career you’re at.

Would you rather be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond?
When job searching, it’s important to understand the many advantages of working in both larger and smaller companies, here are just a few:

Larger companies
Better training resources
Global mobility prospects
Usually a better benefits and support system
Better networking opportunities
Formal processes and methodologies
Specialised job functions
Often greater job security
Greater investment budgets
Smaller companies
Opportunity to progress more quickly
Greater responsibility, and thus wider experience
More autonomy
Often better atmosphere
Increased interaction with senior figures
Agility in decision-making and development
So, when considering a job offer, ask yourself the following questions to assess whether it’s the right size fit for you.

7 questions to ask yourself
What resources will be available to you?
What budget will you be allocated for projects?
What are the key measures of success in your role?
Will your position be focused on maintaining and implementing current procedures or innovation and invention?
How much responsibility will you be granted?
In a larger company you will have the opportunity to liaise with large clients from around the globe, however your role may be more specialist and your contact limited to junior stakeholders. In a smaller company your remit is likely to cover a wider breadth of responsibilities, which is appealing if you’re looking to expand your skillset. The levels of bureaucracy in smaller companies also tend to be reduced, meaning that you have greater scope and less oversight on your projects.

What are the options for global mobility?
Larger companies will have multiple offices across the country, and often the globe. Are you someone who values global mobility opportunities? Larger companies are always better able to offer these.

How will future employers regard the role?
Are future employers in your desired vocation likely to appreciate a bigger brand name on your CV or a varied skillset gained through experience working at a smaller company? Often to reach a certain level you will need to demonstrate a variety of types of experience – what are the gaps that you need to fill?

What are the prospects for career advancement?
One of the big advantages of a larger company is that you can evolve your role without actually having to leave the company. There will be plenty of opportunities for sideways career movement, should you wish to modify your role, whereas in a smaller business this is often impossible.

How well will you be paid?
Bigger companies can typically afford to pay their staff better; however keep an eye out for sharing schemes that smaller companies may be offering.

What type of person are you?
Do you respond well to pressure or shy away from it?
Do you appreciate a range of responsibilities or a more structured task list?
Do you value change or stability?
How important is the social side of work to you?
Only you can know the answers to these questions, and it’s up to you to match these against the advantages and disadvantages of larger and smaller businesses that have been identified in this article so far.

So, what’s right for your next move?
Often different size businesses will suit you at different points in your career. It may also depend on what industry you are currently working in. For example, if you are employed in a specialist industry you may not have the luxury of choosing from a wide range of larger and smaller businesses.

However if you do, consider all of the above factors and questions when assessing your next career move, and decide what’s right for you. At Hays we offer roles of all shapes and sizes, contact your local team here.

I hope you have found the above advice useful. Here are some other Viewpoint blogs and SlideShare presentation to help you effectively manage your career:

Source: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/am-i-wrong-company-culture-christopher-dottie/