Steven Harms » business http://www.sharms.org/blog Life, Linux and Technology Tue, 24 Aug 2010 18:25:04 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 5 Things I Have Learned About Corporations http://www.sharms.org/blog/2009/10/5-things-i-have-learned-about-corporations/ http://www.sharms.org/blog/2009/10/5-things-i-have-learned-about-corporations/#comments Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:12:18 +0000 sharms http://www.sharms.org/blog/?p=639
  • We can build it. Bigger. Faster. Stronger.
  • Explaining a simple argument
  • What apple gets right that we get wrong
    • ]]>     When I was younger I would email successful people and ask how they got where they were, and how I could get there. Now I get paid to work with / on Linux, and figured I would share a few things. Age is a funny thing, and as much as I thought I knew when I was 18, 10 years later gives you a much better perspective.

    1. You can’t be a expert in every field
      My whole life I have been a “computer scientist”. That meant I ran pretty much every operating system, and tried to program in as many languages possible. However, in the professional world, your advice outside of your realm is seldomly used or even asked for. Even if it is technically correct, team x does not want to have team y telling them how to do their job. Swallow it up, not everything will go the way you want it.
    2. Communication is more important than technical expertise
      If you look through the ranks of a corporation, you will notice that seldomly does the most technicially proficient employee ever even get to the ‘C’ level (CTO, CIO etc). In smaller companies, being the expert is important because everything is riding on you. When your company has thousands of employees, communicating efficiently is worth much more. Learn how to talk to non-technical people.
    3. Your manager is always right
      Never be a martyr for a specific technical feature. If your company needs something done a specific way, and you are against it, politely state your position. If they are not interested, do it their way. If the manager was wrong, they will take heat for it. However, if you make a big issue about it, your manager is still the one at the end of the day who evaluates you on your performance review.
    4. Appearance matters
      You are selling a complete package to a corporation. It is important that your outward appearance is in line with the position you are going for. If there are two applicants of similar skill levels, the one who interviews that is well dressed and clean will get that position. First impressions count, especially during interviews.
    5. Everyone has their reasons
      No matter how bad you think a choice or decision was, everyone had a reason for doing it. They thought it out, they presented it, and weighed the factors that matter to them. It is very easy to point out how dumb you think something is, but likely you don’t have all the facts of the entire scenario. If you do have all the facts, calling them out on it won’t fix anything and will likely create resentment.

    Related posts:

    1. We can build it. Bigger. Faster. Stronger.
    2. Explaining a simple argument
    3. What apple gets right that we get wrong

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