Culture Shock

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

Critical skills enable a newcomer to fit into an organization. They involve insight, sensitivity to the essence of a culture, adaptability, or an ability to fit in. This topic is big in my brain because a new hire is joining our department sales team at my workplace.

I immediately sensed her aggressiveness as she gave me an earful of her resume. She’s managed this organization and that one; she’s a licensed masseuse and is now applying for an Oregon license. She had no interest in my background, and sensing that she wanted to manage me, I began avoiding her.

She affected my coworkers similarly. Our consensus was “too aggressive and pushy.” The other day, she felt neglected by our department manager and complained to top management. That angered our department manager, and the day became tense. I received instructions to teach the new person about closing the department at the end of the day. After thanking me for showing her, she intended to complain again the next morning about our manager not treating her correctly.

I said, “You must be able to get along with our manager.” She said, “No!” I looked directly into her stare and repeated, “You must get along with our department manager.” She didn’t answer and appeared to be fuming internally. Finally, I reminded her, “Every organization has a culture.” To her credit, she nodded.

I don’t know what was churning in her brain. Hopefully, as an experienced worker, she has enough insight to recognize that up-front winning is less effective than being open to learning and adaptable. She has the basic smarts and sales skills for our sales team, and if she can adapt, she will be a valued coworker.

Culture is what it is, and it is neither right nor wrong. A culture is adaptable and can be influenced, but can’t be bullied. I know from experience how hard it is to grasp and adapt to a new culture and that doing so requires conformance. I also know that one can spice up a culture later by thoughtfully voicing bits of opposition.

Dear Friends: A concept of culture goes hand in glove with mutual trust. Diana