Navigating through different cultures is common in software product management and engineering:
When you work with companies of different sizes, you deal with various ways of doing things.
Subsidiaries within bigger companies have their own cultures, adding more to consider.
Working with outside contractors or agencies brings in even more different styles.
Sometimes, your workplace culture clashes with your own values.
These clashes can show up in many ways: different ways of communicating (writing versus speaking), trust versus control cultures, what's important versus what costs money, even how people dress.
It's hard to completely change one culture to fit another. So, should we try to create a mix, a kind of "glue" culture that brings the best of both worlds?
Glue Cultures
Building this glue culture needs planning and everyone's involvement. It means understanding and respecting each other's differences, talking openly, and showing why we do things differently.
People who lead by example play a big role on both sides. They show others how to embrace diversity and work well together.
Dealing with cultural differences isn't easy, but by creating a glue culture, we can make our workplaces better for everyone. Have you ever tried building a glue culture in your workplace? I'd love to hear your story.
What I read
This is separate section of this newsletter. I will list some of the best articles I read on the internet. They may or may not be related to the topic of this article. I will keep a list of the best articles (currently >800) at https://www.digital-product-management.com. These are today’s picks:
You May Not Need That Costly, Time-Consuming Infra Re-Org: Ways to organize re-organizations including infrasturcture teams.
Product Discovery: Pitfalls and Anti-Patterns: Several anti-patterns on how Product Discovery is being misused by teams
Observations About Leadership: 30 thoughts on leadership and how to be a better leader.