Some say that if you find the perfect job, you won’t have to worry about everything else. While this adage sounds like a dream, this isn’t always guaranteed to be perfect, especially if you work in a company with a unique way of doing things different from what you are used to. If you can’t adapt to their culture, you may find it hard to enjoy the job you have tried so hard to get.
Here are 4 reasons why company cultures are important to your sanity:
Mental Health
Bringing performance to the table is highly stressful, however, if your targets are unrealistic or the environment is not conducive, you may be susceptible to develop depression. If the workplace turns out to be toxic and abusive, you will want to run away as far as possible.
Aligns with Your Beliefs
To make sure you are happy at work, you need to feel that you are contributing to the greater good and know that you are working towards the same business goals. Your company’s vision must make sense to you or otherwise, you’ll be unsure about your objectives and reasons for working there in the long run.
Jeans vs Suits
Are your future colleagues’ fun-loving and easy-going? Or are they all about protocols and processes? Do you want to express yourself through your clothes? Or you think all companies should have a proper dress code? Make sure that you assess the company you will work for as these small things can affect how you work, especially when you’re going to stay and breathe in this office for at least 8 hours a day.
Old Boy’s Club
Does the company have a boardroom full of old men in suits? Or the company is made up of 99% female team? Gender, race, and class equality should be important in the company you will work for since this may also impact your chances of having a promotion in future.
Fortunately, there are ways to check whether the company you are joining or planning to apply for is good for you.
Below are five ways on how you can research the company culture of your target company:
Research Online
When in doubt, search online about the things you want to know about the company. Once you type the name of the company, check the pages to see if there are reviews regarding the company and the people who work in it. You can also check their website to see the work culture they have or the benefits they provide to employees.
Check the Company’s Social Media Page
Another great way to research about the company’s culture is by checking their social media pages. Many companies nowadays are reaching out to their audience and prospective clients through social media. Try to write comments on their social media page and see how they will respond to your queries. Also, you can check how they respond to other posts and notice how often they post updates about their company.
Connect with Current and Past Employees of the Company
While browsing social media, why not reach out to the people who are affiliated with the company? You can easily connect with the current and past employees of your target company through sites like LinkedIn or Facebook, and reach out to them to learn more. You can also ask about the company culture and processes so you know what to expect. Also, try to leave a good impression on these people because they can be your future referrers and consequently, you can be ahead in the pack during applications.
Look for News About the Company
Some companies, especially those major corporations, are often seen in the news, and these could be about their new investments or improvements in their businesses. Any changes to the company will certainly influence the company’s culture so, you should always consider the type of news released and know if these changes will affect the company positively or negatively.
Ask Around
Finally, look into what other people say about the company. You can do this by asking your family or friends who are not part of it and see what they think about it. If you hear anything negative or unacceptable details about the company, verify them using different reliable sources, and decline the offer if it proves true.
Conclusion
Accepting a job shouldn’t be done immediately even if it is the job you have been waiting for a long time. Always do your research about the company and assess if they have the right culture for you. If you find the company that matches the culture you can adapt to and enjoy, go for it! If not, there are surely other offers that you can look until you find the right one for you.
Making sure you know what you are getting yourself into before you dived into a new job and a new company, check out these articles to help you to settle into a new workplace:
How to Politely Turn Down After-Work Socialising Without Hurting Your Career or Offending Your Coworkers
10 Ways to Improve Your Workplace Relationships
How To Make A Great First Impression At Your New Workplace
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MiddleMe 
https://amyshedrack200.Wordpress.com/2021/03/15/the-vincent-ehindero-award-2
I just nominated you for the Vincent Ehindero blogger award. Feel free to accept it 😊.
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ANOTHER EXCELLENT +
You JUST Keep on, KEEPIMG ON GIRL!
Those foolish enough to NOT investigate prospective employers MIGHT WELL discover (too late), that they have jumped into a POOL of very hungry alligators. (NOT, the prudent thing tom do.)
God please guide US,
Patrick (On St. Patrick’s Day no less)
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Haha. Indeed, my friend. Well said.
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I think that the company culture is being made by the boss(especially by the founder). So, if she/he is a good person, the company should be also OK.
By the way, thank you so much for giving me many „like“ but do you really read my Japanese in translating..?
It is a hard job. And also, it maybe not easy to understand because writing way is very Japanese…
Are you in the USA..?
You must be a very famous lady there…
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I’m from Singapore, living in Malaysia. I usually copy and paste your articles into Google Translate. I managed to get the gist of the meaning of the articles although there are terms that cannot be translated.
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Thank you for replying my question..!
I understood.
I used to work with people from your country in Chicago USA but only for 4 weeks…
You are a quite famous lady in Singapore/Malaysia, right..?
Anyway, very nice to have found you.
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Good to connect with you too. No, unfortunately I’m not a famous lady in Singapore/Malaysia.
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Thank you for your comments.
However, how do you have so many followers..???
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I do read, follow and comment on other blogs but most importantly, good content is the key.
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I am so honored to hear you say that. I could climb the tree.
In Japan, people say, even the pig will climbs a tree if you butter up…😅
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Haha. That’s a good one!
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Excellent ! Kally I’m writing in French language .I’m from Morocco. If you can translate my writing. If you can nominated me for the Vincent Ehindero .
I’ll be glad to know you more.
Thank you.
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Your blog is a fount of knowledge for graduating students and young professionals. This is another great piece of advice about how to learn about company culture and determining a career trajectory.
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Loved this post Kally. There were times where I was offered what I thought was the perfect job, but after doing some research of my own and talking with people who actually work in the prospective place of employment I relied on my gut feelings about the place. More times than not, I ended up not choosing to accept their offer. Down the line, there were circumstances that happened within the company that made me feel like I made the right decision.
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Good for you, Mark! If you can pen those instances down on a post, I’ll love to read what you have gone through.
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Wow this is super useful, although being a fresh graduate in Covid time does not leave you with so many choices. For some of with no choice to choose between the companies we would like to work in.
Thank you for the post:)
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Thank you so much! I’m so glad you find the article inspiring.
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Researching company culture is important. A couple of times now I have worked with startups or companies that are a few months old. It’s much more difficult to get an understanding of their culture beforehand in these cases.
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Thank you for these tips! Company culture can have such a big impact on work experience, yet often it isn’t something you can check on the company’s website as easily as hard facts. It’s nice to know there are ways to get an idea of the atmosphere beforehand rather than just jumping in and learning by making mistakes. 😊
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I think so too. If you avoid it, why join a toxic workplace, right?
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For investor research, corporate environment is generally ranked by the “Big Nine”: customer service, flexibility, results, excellence, innovation, collaboration, diversity, integrity, and respect. Because corporations will produce their own PR materials for quarterlies, reporting firms will aggregate anonymous reviews and surveys from employees. And from that, charts are constructed that compare the various aspects. For investors, this can help to expose cultural risks in management.
For prospective employees, however, these can also be helpful. For example, if you’re the type of person who likes to work in a collaborative environment where innovation is valued, you can match that up to businesses that score higher in those areas. I think Glassdoor is one such company that produces a job-search and recruitment oriented version of these reports.
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Please follow me https://twistblogz.wordpress.com
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Followed! Welcome to MiddleMe!
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Thanks
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