This August will be my 40th year riding a desk in a large corporation. I have served as an IC, team leader, and Sr. manager and found that some things are better than when I started, some things are worse. These are some of the rules of corporate behavior that I have found that are timeless:
• Your direct manager Is not your friend. You can be friendly with them, but your job is to decrease the amount of hassle in their lives. The more successful you are in doing that, the better your performance appraisals will be. If you are unlucky enough to have a manager who is an asshole, consider a transfer or another job.
• Corporations exist solely to return value for their shareholders…nothing else. They seek to obtain as much work from you for as little pay and benefits as they can get away with. If you want to make more money, you will need to be promoted or jump to another company.
• Always assume that Directors, and above, are sociopaths. Remember, they got to where they were by climbing over the bodies of their colleagues. In dealing with these individuals, treat the interaction as a deposition, giving as little information as possible with a smile. They do not care about your problems.
• The role of Human Resources is to protect the corporation and to compound human misery. Catburt is a real person and anytime you need to deal with HR consider changing jobs to another company. The stink will stay with you as long as you are with that company.
• 100% of what you write in an email will be disseminated throughout the company. %75 of what you tell a trusted co-worker, even in confidence, will be broadcast throughout the company.
• With 2 people of equal skill, the most sociable and friendly will get promoted. People who are able to promote themselves without seeming to do so, are the most successful.
• Never-ever burn your bridges when you leave a company. Life is long and you never know who you will work with again.