Unease at a Job May Be a Sign of Culture Clash

Have you ever visited a business where you could see and feel the enthusiasm and energy of the employees?

Or have you ever visited a business where it felt cold and sterile, and the employees seemed to be afraid to even smile--or to ask a supervisor to deviate slightly from normal procedures to accommodate a customer’s special needs?

Businesses not only produce a wide range of products and services, from a solar cells company in Camarillo to a sandwich shop in Fillmore, but they also have their own personality, their own feeling, or their own culture.

Would you rather work for an open and energetic company where you are encouraged to take risks, and where laughter in the background is the norm rather than the exception? Would you expect productivity, loyalty and employee commitment to be higher in a company run by the numbers or in a firm where objectives and results are developed and evaluated in a collaborative manner and where people really count?

Would you rather shop in a department store where a salesperson is happy to help you as you move from casual clothes to the shoe department or in a store where you have difficulty finding someone to simply ring up your purchase?

Culture is a set of values, norms and beliefs that guide behavior in an organization. By guiding behavior, an organization’s culture directly--and powerfully--affects the environment that we sense--what we feel, what we see, what we hear, what we do.

Although values might be stated in a company’s mission, credo or employee handbook, an organization’s culture is typically undocumented and is usually left for an individual to figure out. And despite the potential challenge of figuring out an organization’s culture, understanding that culture is important. It directly affects how comfortable and effective we are at work, just as we individually contribute to and affect the culture.

Our fit with an organization’s culture affects how comfortable we feel at work as well as the viability of a longer-term employment relationship.

We all have visited places where we feel immediately at home. We are being accepted as who we are and having fun is easy. Clearly, we want to stay, be a part of this environment and contribute in some way.

And I am sure we have all gone somewhere where we immediately felt uncomfortable. We tried to fit in and hoped it would get better. But not only did it not get better, it got worse. In this case, we look for the first opportunity to leave.

Our reaction to an organization’s culture is very similar. We can feel comfortable and want to contribute or feel like we don’t belong and want to leave. Or worse, be asked to leave.

As a consequence, understanding a company’s culture is particularly important for someone looking for a job. Yet all too often when we are exploring employment opportunities, our focus is on compensation and benefits, functional requirements and location without much thought about potential fit or compatibility with an organization’s culture.

In addition, culture can support an organization or an individual in achieving objectives. It can just as easily work against an organization or an individual. For example, let’s imagine you are the manager of a local Ventura County community bank that has been a success for more than 20 years. This success has been based on customer service and a cautious, methodical culture and approach to decision making and major change.

Now, though, consolidation in the industry, the growing threat of electronic/home banking and ever-increasing capital requirements have created the immediate need for a substantially different business strategy requiring faster decision making and rapid change. All your employees nod their heads in agreement as you explain to them the required changes. Yet as the days turn into weeks, it becomes apparent that the historic cultural strengths of caution have become impediments in making the fundamental changes now required for success. As a result, both organizational and individual success are being placed in jeopardy.

Clearly, good plans, an action program, and communicating the need for change are not enough.

Next month’s column will look at ways to nurture and shape a supportive culture for achieving organizational objectives.

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ary Izumo is an instructor in the Moorpark College business department and has managed his own consulting practice. He is a former McKinsey & Co. consultant and practice leader for the Strategic Management Consulting Practice of Price Waterhouse.