Are you’re ready to take on a new role or are you simply exploring potential employers edging towards that dream job, a company’s work culture is something you should seriously consider before making any moves. Here’s why…
Work culture is key to every employee’s experience in the workplace. Culture encompasses a company’s attitudes, beliefs, practices, ethics and community spirit. Research by Harvard Business Review found that employees feel supported, motivated and more productive when a company’s work culture is healthy. When work culture is toxic or simply not a good fit, it can lead to stress and a lack of long-term satisfaction in a role, according to findings by MIT Sloan.
Post-Covid, work culture has become even more critical. Whether you work remotely or spend time in an office, feeling optimistic about your company’s ethos, and your role within that environment, is vital to your overall well-being.
But how do you know that the company you’re interviewing for, or considering a role with, aligns with your values? After all, what may constitute the perfect work culture for one employee, may not be suitable for another. Here are the key areas you can assess to ensure a company’s culture is right for you.
Connect with Candor
Candor is a new professional platform dedicated to pulling back the curtain on a company’s inner workings. With third-party intel on salaries, benefits and culture on tap, this centralised hub provides essential knowledge and information to help you decide whether a company’s culture is a good fit. Candor is also an excellent resource for advice on salary negotiation and industry developments, so even if you’re not looking for work culture insights right now, this is a website worth bookmarking for the future.
Community Check
While a company may have a good reputation, the nuances of its cultural climate can be difficult to identify. Look for evidence of existing networks within a workforce to ensure the company you’re considering working with has robust structures in place for minorities. LGBTQ+ networks, diversity, inclusion and equality (DI&E) working groups, and other internal substructures and networks are good indicators that the company values the happiness and progression of its internal stakeholders.
Rate and Review
Who better to get the inside scoop on a company’s work culture than its employees? Glassdoor allows you to search for millions of roles across hundreds of companies, great and small. Read first-hand employee reviews and view a company’s overall cultural score for honest insights into its culture. Glassdoor requires all employees to certify their relationships with companies when posting content, so you can trust that the information you’re reading is verified.
Benefit in Kind
From complimentary breakfast and unlimited gym membership to shares, maternity and paternity leave, it’s essential to consider what a company’s benefits say about its work culture. Perks are expensive for a company to provide, so a workplace that offers incentives like healthcare, insurance or childcare usually illustrates their commitment to the long-term happiness of their employees.
Real Talk
There’s no better way to assess a company’s work culture than by asking those currently working there. From how workloads are managed to how day-to-day attitudes and practices of a business are conducted and communicated, you’ll learn pretty quickly whether a work culture is a good match for you simply by asking an employee what their personal experience at the company is like.
Turnover Traits
While you might spend a lot of time researching a company’s background and reviews, one of the easiest ways to assess whether a work culture is favourable is to look at its turnover. If the company is constantly rehiring for the same position, it could hint at an unhappy workforce.
Leading Roles
Putting all of these tools into practice can be challenging, which is why we’ve selected three notable roles currently hiring at companies with proven track records of positive culture, particularly around diversity, inclusion and equality.
Airbnb
Airbnb is renowned for its inclusive work culture. The homestay platform emphasises welcoming candidates with backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in tech and has actively developed policy around ensuring its employees manage a healthy work/life balance. Airbnb is currently hiring in several roles, including Senior Communications Manager.
Booking.com
Booking.com has received stellar reviews from employees past and present for its inclusive culture. The company bases its ethos on four core values; do the right thing, learn forever, own it and think customer first. These guiding principles and its progressive onboarding strategy make this a working culture worth considering. Check out their current roles in Customer Sales.
DICE
Entertainment platform DICE offers an impressive array of benefits, including 401(k), flexible schedules and health insurance. The reason DICE rates so highly in the work culture department, however, is its inclusive community. Underrepresented communities are actively encouraged to apply as they work to create a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce. They’re currently hiring several roles, including a DEI Community Manager.
By Jo Linehan
