On the Corporation, Part One.

The Corporation.

The jewel of our civilization. The best example of successful capitalism. Our life, on many levels, is being run by it. And we give it life.

If we had been told centuries ago that such entities would exist, we would probably have laughed. A virtual legal person? What a concept. It has its own laws but doesn't exist, is composed of humans yet continues on breathing when its parts are crumbling. As with Steinbeck, it is the ultimate justification. Kicking you out of your land? Sorry, not my fault, the Corporation dictates it. If I'm part of the Corporation? Oh no, I just work for it. Got to do what you got to do, right? Bread and butter to my family, dust and gravel to yours. Not my problem, find your own Corporation.

And yet, for many people the Corporation is a good choice. It provides a steady income, and usually job security. It has a good brand name, gives a certain credibility. And as a whole, it serves a purpose in society. Without Procter and Gamble, where would you get your soap? Without Johnson and Johnson, where the baby powder? Without Microsoft, how would you be able to complain about your computer? My argument is not that they are intrinsically bad. However, they are internally flawed. Flawed for the countless people without faces that work for a faceless but logo'd Corporation.

My experience is only based on the technology Corporation. In some regards, it might be different from the normal one, since in this industry, there are no cash cows. Well, okay, there are. However, they need maintenance and constant care, and often times updates and fixes, which is slightly different than, let's say, soap. Although with the development of 3, 4 and 5 blades razors, maybe P&G is not safe either... but I digress. The technology Corporation, as I know it, is inefficient. It fails in a number of things, from small little details to workflow problems. I am not pretentious enough to think I can fix any of its flaws, but if my opinion counted, I do tend to believe it could be a better place.

E-mails

Death to e-mails. Those things take time, energy, and complicate things overly. Now, yes, in an international setting, it is impossible to talk to a person face-to-face all the time. Matter of fact in any large company, getting to talk to someone might mean walking across half a campus. But please stop communicating through e-mails. It's the best medium to achieve absolutely no work while appearing busy. Oh yes, you have 54 e-mails in your inbox? Congratulations, do you want a medal? Get your freaking work done instead.

Now I understand, you're a manager, you have to be important, and e-mails are the best way to remind people across continents that you exist. But those people that are below you have work to do, unlike you. Unless you really have something important to say, don't bother. And I doubt you really have that much to say every day.

E-mails ruin my day, they really do. Instead of people coming to your desk and asking you something, they send a badly written e-mail that doesn't explain anything. I spend half an hour trying to decipher it, half an hour to solve the issue, and half an hour to send back another e-mail with full fledged explanation. Why!? Come to me and ask me, I'll explain at the same time as I do it. I save 30 min in the front and 30 min in the back. 67% less time lost, that's a number your higher management wants to see (you want better numbers? Be positive. "300% increased efficiency!" See how they like that one). And if asking is not possible... call. Please. There is a phone. It transmits voice. Voice is good, voice is fast. Use it, unless you have an incomprehensible accent like mine.

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In the next episodes, in no particular order: software lifecycle, meetings, bureaucracy, integration, office supplies, technology, management...