Employee Perspectives

As far as management are concerned, Solaris could not be a more tight-knit family of similar minded and sincerely dedicated folk. Indeed, Kimberly marvels at the unity she sees resulting from her culture management handiwork: “It’s so rewarding to see everyone on the same wave length… just the other day, a guy come up to me and said ‘I’d like to thank you for actually paying me too have so much fun’, and I was blown away by that”. Kimberly says that she has never felt such a warm sense of community in an organization and has little suspicions that some employees might be merely ‘faking it’: “I know this organization like the back of my hand”, she was telling her querying husband one evening on their way home after work, “and they all genuinely love it…besides, those who were just ‘putting it on’ wouldn’t last a day…”

Kimberly’s judgement appears to accurately describe many of the employees’ reactions to the programme. Performance and profitability are very healthy and staff turnover is low, which is rare in the ‘churn and burn’ call-centre industry. Indeed, for some employees, life at Solaris is something quite unique and rewarding compared to their previous work experiences. They have gained a sense of belonging and collective purpose that they have seldom experienced elsewhere and are grateful for the chance to work at Solaris.

One of the most enthusiastic employees at Solaris is Kris, a 30-year-old ex-pro surfer from California who had immigrated to Australia after seeing Crocodile Dundee (which he considers an all-time cinematic great). Whenever Kris talked to his teammates, his team leader or management he was a veritable bundle of energy and vivaciousness, speaking so quickly about how much the company meant to him that it was sometimes difficult to understand what he was trying to say. In the team exercises he will always ‘Sing Song’ the loudest and makes an effort to motivate others if he thinks they are not ‘pulling their weight’ or displaying the required levels of keenness. Kris finds his employment at Solaris an exhilarating experience because he can have fun at work his work and has the opportunity to make himself “a more complete person”. He explains to his team leader during their weekly progress meetings that his job is not ‘just work’ but a means of personal fulfilment.

Other Solaris employees have, perhaps, a more ‘down-to-earth’ approach to the culture, enjoying the belonging and commitment it brings to their everyday lives without going ‘over board’ about it. Arthur, for example, a 24-year-old agent, always tries to remind himself that you can take the culture seriously only up to a point. But at the end of the day, it is helpful for dealing with disgruntled customers because the team culture makes you feel that you are not alone. And the fun aspect of the programme means that you do not have to take ‘nasty calls’ to heart. Like many other agents, Arthur thinks he has a pretty good understanding about why there is a culture management programme at Solaris. He said to friend (who worked in another call-centre in inner Brisbane) that it is designed to make people better workers and thus generate increased profits. The inquisitive friend raised his eyebrows, and replied, “yeah, by brainwashing you…right?” Arthur replied, “well, if it doesn’t hurt anyone and makes us better people and better employees, I don’t mind being brainwashed…where’s the problem?” His friend thought about this for a while, and then concurred, “Well, I suppose you’re right… if it makes life easier for you guys, then that’s something. Come to think of it, at least people are nice to you where you work. I would prefer your situation to the vacuous hell-hole I work in, mate, any day”.

Some employees are more cynical – a careful examination might pick up on the rolling eyes and sardonic smirks when a team is singing I’m Walking on Sunshine or engaging in a group hug. These disbelievers know how to ‘play along’ in order to get by without emotionally investing in what they refer to as ‘overdone hype’. That is to say, they practice a behavioural conformity in which they outwardly display the ‘right’ actions and attitudes, but inwardly debunk much of what is enthusiastically celebrated by those who are more positive about the culture. This ‘acting’ was sometimes very exhausting. For these employees, the Solaris culture does not really enhance their working lives and they find it painfully ‘phoney’. Charlene is a typical member of this group. She is 19 years old and has decided to spend a year working before going to university. Once out of earshot of her team leader, her main reaction to many of the culture rituals is uncontrollable laugher. She lampoons fellow employees who ‘love this stuff’ by calling them ‘Solaris Androids’ – “they look like real people, but no, they’re robots!” Over coffee, in a nearby café, she explains her mirth to a confidant: “Everybody runs around saying ‘Excitement, Attitude, Achievement”, and I just say to myself: Grow-up dorks, take a look at yourself and have some dignity…” As far as Charlene can tell, people too easily buy into the hype and rhetoric. She would rather that the company is honest: “this work is shitty, don’t pretend it isn’t ... the ‘credibility gap’ between what is said and done is too wide.”

Charlene is not alone in her sentiments. Scattered throughout the organization are cynics who are not quite prepared to transform themselves into ‘Solaris People’. They psychologically distance themselves from the cultural norms. Take Pauly for example. He has been working at Solaris for one and a half years now and has never really bought into the ‘Solaris Way’. Even in the recruitment interview, he said, he just faked his way through it: “They wanted me to say ‘it’s the people, it’s the people’, so I did. They wanted me to say, ‘its all about attitude, attitude’, so I did. Basically, I would have said anything they wanted to hear… I needed the job, but I wasn’t going to sell my soul for it”. Pauly thinks there are simply too many contradictions in the culture for it to be genuinely believed. “Its like, people say: “I have a Solaris Attitude” but if it’s a company that promotes individualism how can someone actually have a Solaris attitude? What exactly is the Solaris attitude? If you are promoting individualism and diversity why are they forcing everyone to be the same?”

Other cynics at Solaris are humiliated by the culture exercises, which they feel pressured into performing. This is especially so when it come to Sing Song time. According to Tom (a 19-year-old musician), it is just too childish and condescending and it makes him feel ridiculous whenever he participates in the ritual. From Tom’s perspective, it does not help that he is in the same team as Kris, the Californian Crocodile Dundee fanatic. In fact, he thoroughly loathes Kris’ fulsome friendliness. He suspects that Kris has made Tom his ‘pet project’ because whenever it came time to Sing Song, Kris will grab Tom by the arm and sway from side to side with him as if they were at a Californian rock concert. Tom whispered to a trusted teammate after enduring yet another impromptu rendition of I’m walking on Sunshine, “Singing with that guy has got to some kind of health hazard. You know, working at Solaris is sometimes like working for an American Kindergarten… not just any Kindergarten, but an American one”.

[1] Case prepared by Peter Fleming, Judge Institute of Management Studies, University of Cambridge, based on original research. Details have been disguised. Copyright Peter Fleming, 2003. Case not to be reproduced without permission.

Date: 2015-04-20; view: 848