Who can understand all 3?

In this paper I conduct a personal assessment, an assessment of Microsoft's organizational culture and analyze how I would fit as a Microsoft employee. I assess myself through The Big 5 Personality Dimensions, my values and my goals. According to a to my personality dimensions, I test as extremely extraverted, agreeable, conscientious, and open to experience, while average in neuroticism. My extraversion reveals itself as my most obvious behavioral element. During the first week of a new quarter, I introduce myself to a new person about every 20 minutes. As classes continue through the quarter, I make sure to ask questions and offer up my input in class. I also form a relationship with all of my professors. Last week, my Speech Communications teacher from fall '01 called me and offered me a job. My agreeable nature reveals itself when I am working in teams. At Zao Noodle Bar in U-Village, I serve tables on the weekends. All the servers at Zao trust one another and cooperate. We run each other's food, refill drinks for other servers, clean off all dirtied tables and even take shifts when another server feels overwhelmed. I enjoy serving customers at Zao and always have a smile on my face when I work. Customers ask me at least once a week why I am so happy. I work for Vision Creation Inc. as an intern to further my business skills. This job requires strong conscientiousness. Every week I work on a marketing plan to increase the executive coaching business at Vision Creation. The company depends upon my initiative to create tasks and follow through with them. I responsibly record my own hours for the pay periods. Persistently, I call local businesses to set up interviews with their owners to conduct needs assessments for marketing research. The Southwestern internship tested my openness to experience during the summer of 2001. This internship involved selling educational books door-to-door in Connecticut. To commit myself to this job for a summer, I took an intellectual look at it and separated myself from my fear. The job offered me a chance to learn so much about self-reliance, self-management, problem solving, sales, goal setting and many other valuable skills. I saw the value of the job was not about selling books, but the personal growth and friendships I achieved. My neuroticism comes into full view around test time at school. I want to achieve excellent grades, but by nature I am relaxed. I worry less than the anxious students, but my desire for high results causes me to tense up, bite my nails and perspire. Besides the Big 5 Personality Dimensions, I can describe myself through my values and goals. Above all else, I value compassion. I believe in the importance of understanding other people and wanting to help mankind. Compassion drives selflessness, respect and a need to serve. One can look at compassion as the tree and the other important values as its fruit. My vision contains one goal: fulfillment. I base my decisions on whether or not I think they will provide me with this fulfillment. I aim for fulfillment in my relationships and my career. I spend most of my free time enjoying the company of my girlfriend Renee and keeping in touch with my friends and family. As far as a career, I continually keep myself open to learning about the different jobs that available. I attend career fairs and talk to the representatives. I interview people who I think I have interesting jobs. The career center in Mary Gates keeps lots of good information on career paths as well. The question stands before me, would I find fulfillment working for Microsoft? First, I must analyze the culture of Microsoft. Microsoft states that their goal is "To enable people and businesses throughout the world to realize their full potential." The programs Microsoft creates do allow people and businesses to become more efficient, creative and flexible. Microsoft also describes their employee values as open, respectful, achievement oriented and accountable. To gain a more objective view of Microsoft's culture, I have read a few articles online. According to Optimize magazine, Microsoft places its employees in teams of 3-8 and gives them a concise vision and deadline. After that, management gives the teams complete independence and responsibility. This kind of autonomy appeals to my conscientious dimension in that I could use my dependability and need for achievement freely. Also, the freedom would allow me to imagine possible solutions and think critically. Gebler (2000) says that Microsoft provides services to help employees balance home and work responsibilities. This aid would lower my neuroticism by freeing up more time for me and helping me find a balance. Gillmore (1998) refers to an incident where the LA Times caught Microsoft planning a public relations campaign under the guise of an outpouring of grassroots letter writing to lawmakers on behalf of Microsoft. Although this tactic by Microsoft does degrade my trust, fighting for their survival also appeals to my appreciation of persisting for achievement. The most comprehensive source (Follows, 2000) provided some observations about Microsoft after working there for six months. He writes "The people are nice...the pace is slow...the culture is meeting-centric.the planning process is radically 'bottom-up' and surprisingly nonpolitical." These descriptors all describe a work environment that I find attractive and fulfilling. Microsoft still must meet my value of compassion before I can claim them to be a good fit. On Microsoft's "Helping Build Our Community" page they talk about a couple philanthropy projects. In one project Microsoft donates equipment, software and training to Nigerian students. In another, Microsoft contributes 25 million dollars worth of cash and software to a Jackson non-profit company that helps homeless families reestablish households. Even here on campus, Microsoft spends millions to keep the University of Tennessee a technologically school. Microsoft appeals to the extremely high level of my personality traits extraversion, conscientiousness, and openness to experience. Their community services coincide with my strong value for compassion and working for Microsoft would offer me many opportunities to find fulfillment. After discovering some things about myself and researching Microsoft's organizational culture, I believe that I would fit at Microsoft.