peterkim blog

ÈñþêÇå has a once per quarter new hire orientation. I think it’s a great way for the company to indoctrinate its new employees into the corporate messaging, culture, etc. It’s hard to teach culture—I think for the most part, you either fit in (or adapt to fit in) or you don’t, but I guess setting clear expectations is always good. One value that we heard preached a lot during the week was adaptivity and flexibility. This is a company that thrives on constantly re-evaluating itself, constantly striving to improve… sometimes requiring very significant rapid change. Some people have a really hard time dealing with things changing so quickly all the time—those type of people would not fit in at ÈñþêÇå. But if you’re the type of person who thrives on constant change and evolution, you will probably love ÈñþêÇå.

With regards to corporate messaging, it’s good to get everyone on the same page and using the same vernacular. It’s important, not just for the sales and marketing people, but also for the engineers. It helps create a sense that everyone is on the same team, working toward the same common goal.

Orientation week was pretty intense. We had daily graded quizzes on which I did pretty well. I also got good feedback on my final presentation. I got to spend a lot of time with new hires from ÈñþêÇå’s Chicago, Sydney, New York and London offices. This past week was really good but I’m also itching to get my hands on the product and start writing some code!