Bad Places to Work
Kent R.
Last week, I published Outside Magazine's annual list of Best Places to Work. This week, I thought I'd say a few things about less desirable places to work.
Remember a couple years ago, when someone published a piece revealing the challenging work environment at Amazon? Well, unsurprisingly, that was not the last expose of unhealthy corporate cultures to go viral.
Recently, a previous employee at Uber published an article, detailing her turbulent employment at the rideshare company. The core of the issue? A male dominated and sexist corporate culture. You really just need to read the entire thing.
Sadly, what Susan Fowler wrote about Uber confirms the belief that many people have that HR departments exist solely to benefit the company. And while it would be ridiculous if that weren't true, there's more to the story.
HR departments best serve the company when employees are happy and heard. These are the kinds of HR departments I work with as a Business Consultant. Well oiled HR departments know that their job is to find and nurture the link between employee goals and the goals of the company.
So, when you're interviewing for your next job, ensure that the organization you're interviewing with values – truly values – employees' reasons for joining the company. Organizations that walk the talk will have employee-forward initiatives baked right into recruiting materials and employee literature.
Ask for specifics.
And if you haven't already, take a look at Outside Magazine's Best Places to Work list for what healthy corporate cultures look like.