Here's a rough cut of what I think corporate culture (at least as it's slanted toward a consulting firm) should look like:
1. People first, always.
2. Culture is the rock. It doesn't change. You're always about people, regardless of how difficult that becomes. Otherwise you're just in it for the money (if you let the economy dictate your culture, that is).
3. Be well read. Subscribe to one trade magazine for each industry our lients are in. ASK them what trade magazines they might recommend. Keep them in a library. Encourage literacy.
4. Continued education. You've got to stay sharp, and investing in employees reinforces point #1. Figure out how to enforce this (as a guideline, not a process) at least quarterly. Incent people to learn, to read, to grow.
5. Be passionate.
6. Be well-balanced.
7. Share. There are no secrets. You succeed through trust, and crumble through paranoid privacy.
8. Be thorough and consistent. Follow through on your promises.
9. Don't Go Dark.
10. Celebrate successes. That includes (thanks to Rule #1) birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, in addition to project work, product releases, new ideas, etc.
11. Bonuses are bonuses and salary is salary (also see Joel Spolsky's articles).
12. Use weblogs and instant messaging. Collaborate.
13. Keep it simple.
14. Eat your own cooking. Walk the talk, even if it's hard, and expensive. Related to the rule "Never ask someone to do something you wouldn't do yourself."
15. Give back. Charity isn't something you do when you've got available bench time. We don't live to work: we work to live.
16. Stay humble.
Copyright 2002 © Robert K. Brown
