It takes approximately three seconds after I talk to friends about
my company before I field questions such as “are your offices going to look
like Google’s?” or “will you buy supremely ergonomic chairs?” I usually chuckle at the thought, especially
when my pre-revenue company bank account reads $0.00. And yet there is this implicit assumption
that start-up companies are cool places to work, and must look that way as
well.
My guess is that the aesthetics and culture that people
imagine for start-up companies is a function of how lean those companies must
be in their early days. A small office
with few employees will need an adaptable shape and is likely full of younger
minds with plenty of creative juices – no need for built-in cubicles,
right? A small budget makes for a
minimalist design of the office by default.
Even if I did want to cover up that exposed brick wall or fix the
cracked concrete floors, I don’t have the money. Besides, how would one skateboard to their
desk if the floors were carpeted?
These insights do however raise some interesting questions
about company culture, especially for start-ups. Is there an archetypal culture to which tech
start-ups must conform? Is the pool of potential
employees expecting a Google-esque style of operating? How soon until I am paying for everyone’s
meals and babysitting?
The McKinsey report on non-profit capacity building provides
some analogs to the start-up world. The company’s
culture would seem to derive directly from two general factors: our values and
our “performance culture.” From a values
perspective, our work is fairly well-defined: help college students afford
college. By default, that type of work
requires that we remain culturally-attuned to the needs of college-aged
users. At the same time, we work closely
with companies and universities, both of which will look for some degree of
formality. These factors suggest that we
may conform to some degree to the quintessential tech start-up – a young,
fresh, connected environment that can dress up when necessary for corporate
clients and investors.
From a performance culture perspective, we will be connecting
our success back to the success of students at every benchmark. Our mission is completed when our work
creates a more affordable higher-education environment for everyone, and for
that reason, we must create a culture that is best fit to tell the story of the
college and career-building experience.
That being said, we will likely need to conform to the start-up cultural
prototype so long as it continues to enable our mission and performance.
Do I get to pick this culture at CEO? Yes and no.
As I set the vision for our company’s success, I am self-selecting
cultural designations by default (whether I know it or not). In that sense, I have the ability to change
our strategy, which will gradually shift our culture by default. The best CEOs, I imagine, are the ones who
can shift strategies in such a way that the company culture remains just as
high-performing or more so throughout new directional settings.
The ever-present threat?
Culture is not as easy to change as strategy.
How do your values and performance expectations provide
insight into your company’s culture?
Sources:
Effective
Capacity Building in Nonprofit Organizations (prepared for Venture Philanthropy
Partners by McKinsey and Company, 2001) at:
http://www.vppartners.org/learning/reports/capacity/assessment.pdf
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