Exchanges with recruiters and engineers and others about the culture at different tech companies leaves a mixed response that raises a red flag. Me: “I have heard that $COMPANY has an $ADJECTIVE culture.” Them: “Yeah, that’s sometimes true but it depends on the group.”

That’s what we, in the business, call a Red Flag.

Let me back up.

The Context

I live in the Seattle area and have worked at Microsoft. I’ve been a manager for many years and both interviewed and hired many engineers, leaders, and program/product managers. The former employees from some of the larger companies up here have described a variety of experiences within the cultures of those companies. Some say, “My team was collaborative, but none of our partner teams were…” or “I got tired of the cut-throat competition for resources and executive attention…” or “The constant focus on improving $METRIC caused short-sighted decisions…” I could go on, and you probably could too. Even if they lead with something positive, just asking a probing question or two will concede some less-positive attributes.

No company has a monoculture. Every company has its unique mix of attributes that form its culture. Those attributes vary from group to group within the company. So there is an overriding character to a company’s culture that often makes the top-line summary. It colors the leading anecdote you hear from a current or former insider, or the partner of one.1

You can think of joining a company as agreeing to be dropped off a helicopter in the ocean among some number of nearby islands. Is it possible that none or few of the islands are a good fit for you? Maybe you’d rather be dropped into a different part of the ocean.

The Flag

Most companies aspire to a common culture. Some companies have very strong recruiting processes and cultural-reinforcement norms that help them achieve it. But when the rubber meets the road, there will always be a team with a dysfunctional leader, or an unrealistic deadline, or a unique technical opportunity that demands nothing less than a “hard-core” focus on results. Or, in more positive terms, your interview process might not reveal the character of the team you eventually land in, and you’ll end up in a situation that’s a poor fit with you.

"It depends on the team" is a Red Flag

This image from the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing symbolizes the possible cultural landscape in a company. Sure, that sweet, snow-covered ski-jump ramp in the middle is awesome. The rest, not so much.

There’s an addage in hiring decisions that goes, “If you’re on-the-fence, the candidate is a no-hire.” Hiring decisions want unanimity. You should hope for the same. If you can’t find a unanimous conclusion, what do you do? It’s reasonable to say: If you’re on the fence, the company is a no-accept.

Companies should worry deeply about the reputation of their culture and character.2 They should work hard to drive clear values and systems from the top down that improve and normalize the culture. This will help identify and remediate groups or leaders that contribute to any negative reputation. This will also help new team members build up their contribution to a better culture for everyone.

What’s your tolerance for Red Flags?

You cannot find a monoculture, whether positive or negative, but you should seek a community. Community, in this sense, is a body of individuals unified by a common set of values, goals, and characteristics…those attributes that a team has.

The challenge you face when considering a company’s fit with you is, how can you make sure that the general character you’re seeing is also the specific one that you’ll find if you join them and start working on a team?

What is your tolerance for Red Flags? In other words, if you hear or see mixed signals about different teams, does it matter to you? Are you more aligned with the company and its mission and less concerned about the team’s character? This can work for you, particularly because a team’s culture is more dynamic due to it’s smaller size & scope. It also may work because you can join and have a positive effect on changing the team’s culture once you’re there. Be clear in your mind that you’re signing up for that uncertainty and work.

How many Red Flags start from the top? Does the company’s mission seem a bit off? Is their value system constructed in a way that results in negative behaviors (‘super-pumpedness’, anyone?)? Spend some time with everything the company says about itself in its values and principles. See if you can spin each bullet point in both a positive and negative direction. Ask your interviewers to describe their experience with specific bullet points in the values.

It goes without saying, but if you have contacts that work there, ask them. Ask them about the specific teams, positive and negative, you’ve heard things about. Use this information when you talk to recruiters. Don’t be afraid to say something like, “I’ve heard that Team X has a date-driven mission and they burn pretty hard on dates instead of quality. How do you describe this team to candidates like me?”

Notes:

  1. The recruiters will always always always have nothing but positive things to say, or maybe neutral. The informational interview you have with a hiring manager will be largely the same. I have heard “it depends on the team” from employees, former employees, and even spouses of employees. It’s almost like a qualifier on something negative, like “Yeah, Chad can be pretty lazy but it depends on the day of the week.” ↩

  2. If you work at a company where teams have a wide variance in their character and culture, ask yourself how you feel about this. Can you work to change it? Has it affected your ability to attract, develop, and retain team members? ↩