Published October 2019
It’s Halloween, so allow me a spooky story…
Due to the nature of my work, I have a rather extensive network. At any given point in time, I’m typically helping one or two colleagues identify a better fit to further their career.
Such was the case recently as I sat down with a talented young contact to discuss his career, current position, and future aspirations. Due to a specialized skillset, the number of potential area employers was relatively finite. As we discussed one – a prominent local firm – his comment was, “No thanks, even the managers there admit it’s not a good place to work.”
A week later I forwarded a job opening posted on LinkedIn to another colleague. She is currently out of work but won’t be for long due to her terrific resume. I forwarded the post, but tempered my comments that I didn’t think the nationally-recognized firm had the best reputation as an employer. She quickly responded with, “Two of my former colleagues went to work there and they both hate it!”
Think about that! Two A-players wouldn’t even investigate opportunities with these firms because their reputations for lousy cultures preceded them. Their culture is filtering out top-notch potential employees who do their homework from even interviewing with them. Over time, they’ll be stuck with those desperate for a paycheck, willing to settle, or perpetuating the toxic culture.
Culture, like ghosts, may not be visible. But almost everyone knows which houses are haunted.
—
Link to Working Great! on Amazon
Back to the Column Archives
Check out the Column Archives for columns on other pertinent business issues
Copyright 2019 Brimeyer LLC. All Rights Reserved.