Why Are You Here?
I interviewed at a tech company a few months ago for a software engineering job. It was a larger organization, with an impressive campus located right on the Pacific Ocean. There were gorgeous views of the water from just about every vantage point in the sizable two buildings they occupied.
As I was getting the tour, my guide was rattling off all of the perks that came with employment: a gym onsite, self-evident proximity to the ocean for the surfing-inclined, a steady supply of coffee and food, and so on. She was incredibly preceptive, so she concluded by asking me, "But I wouldn't guess that all of those extras matter a whole lot to you, do they?"
I smiled. "They're definitely not a deciding factor for me," I offered, "but who doesn't like constant sugar and caffeine on-demand?"
I have to qualify what I'm about to say by first admitting that I've never founded a tech company. I don't know what kinds of challenges are involved in growing an organization and attracting the correct kind of talent in order to realize your vision. I completely understand that a company that offers these things is more appealing to workers than a similar one does the road that does not.
Indeed, this is something companies do: they compete for employees via their perks. They'll put in ping-pong tables, bring in yoga instructors or other trainers, barbers, catered lunches; some have in-house daycare centers. There was even a company I knew of that built a pub named after their CTO in their basement, with a constant flow of beers on tap from kegs purchased from a local brewery.
I can certainly say from my own work experience, as an employee, that having these perks around for your staff doesn't hurt morale. One of my non-tech friends joked about this culture, saying that you could just be drunk at your computer all day while the company babysits your kids. It comes as a surprise to many people outside of tech (heck, it surprises me) that there's almost no abuse of these things.
It's good that these things are provided, because it offers a platform on which a company culture can flourish. Employees have places where they interact with the other people at the company, even those outside their own department, and can bond over things that don't involve work. And considering that the cost of these extras is typically negligible compared to the sum total they're paying their employees in salaries and benefits, it's not something that the bean counters should balk at.
I'd start to get concerned when these things become the one of key focuses of recruiting efforts. Appeals to self-interest invariably attract the wrong kind of follower. It does make it easier to draw people into your company if you use bells and whistles, but when it inevitably happens, what is the general reaction from them when the company falls on hard times?
When I sign on to work at any company, I accept that the overall mission of the company isn't going to be an easy one; the private sector doesn't cut anyone any slack. If you have the option, I'd choose a company based on its mission and how well that aligns with your own personal goals. Better yet, I'd like to know how all the people that work there feel about how well the work they're doing is in line with the company goals overall. All those little extra perks are wooden nickels.
As I was getting the tour, my guide was rattling off all of the perks that came with employment: a gym onsite, self-evident proximity to the ocean for the surfing-inclined, a steady supply of coffee and food, and so on. She was incredibly preceptive, so she concluded by asking me, "But I wouldn't guess that all of those extras matter a whole lot to you, do they?"
I smiled. "They're definitely not a deciding factor for me," I offered, "but who doesn't like constant sugar and caffeine on-demand?"
I have to qualify what I'm about to say by first admitting that I've never founded a tech company. I don't know what kinds of challenges are involved in growing an organization and attracting the correct kind of talent in order to realize your vision. I completely understand that a company that offers these things is more appealing to workers than a similar one does the road that does not.
Indeed, this is something companies do: they compete for employees via their perks. They'll put in ping-pong tables, bring in yoga instructors or other trainers, barbers, catered lunches; some have in-house daycare centers. There was even a company I knew of that built a pub named after their CTO in their basement, with a constant flow of beers on tap from kegs purchased from a local brewery.
I can certainly say from my own work experience, as an employee, that having these perks around for your staff doesn't hurt morale. One of my non-tech friends joked about this culture, saying that you could just be drunk at your computer all day while the company babysits your kids. It comes as a surprise to many people outside of tech (heck, it surprises me) that there's almost no abuse of these things.
It's good that these things are provided, because it offers a platform on which a company culture can flourish. Employees have places where they interact with the other people at the company, even those outside their own department, and can bond over things that don't involve work. And considering that the cost of these extras is typically negligible compared to the sum total they're paying their employees in salaries and benefits, it's not something that the bean counters should balk at.
I'd start to get concerned when these things become the one of key focuses of recruiting efforts. Appeals to self-interest invariably attract the wrong kind of follower. It does make it easier to draw people into your company if you use bells and whistles, but when it inevitably happens, what is the general reaction from them when the company falls on hard times?
When I sign on to work at any company, I accept that the overall mission of the company isn't going to be an easy one; the private sector doesn't cut anyone any slack. If you have the option, I'd choose a company based on its mission and how well that aligns with your own personal goals. Better yet, I'd like to know how all the people that work there feel about how well the work they're doing is in line with the company goals overall. All those little extra perks are wooden nickels.