After reading about Adobe, T-Mobile, and Nugget Market in the 2020 Fortune Best Companies to Work For list, I started thinking about what actually makes a job worth sticking around for. At Adobe, someone said they love that the company actually follows through on its promises, especially with work/life balance. That reminded me of First, Break All the Rules, where it talks about how great managers care about individual needs and don’t just treat everyone the same. They’re not just saying we care, but they’re doing it consistently.
T-Mobile really stood out to me too. One employee said their boss trusts them to make decisions, and that they feel like they can actually change things. That reminded me of How Google Sold Its Engineers on Management. Google had to prove that managers mattered using data, and one of the biggest things they found was that people just want to feel supported without being micromanaged. Seems like T-Mobile gets that.
Then there’s Nugget Market, where people talk about the company feeling like a family and the CEO being down to earth. That mirrored Why Did We Ever Go Into HR? That article said HR is becoming way more strategic and people focused, not just about rules or forms.
Honestly, I want to be the kind of manager who’s approachable and actually listens. I don’t want to be the boss who just checks boxes. But I think what’ll be hardest is balancing being nice and holding people accountable. HR basics, like feedback and development plans, will help with that. Those tools matter way more than I used to think. And now I see why companies that actually care about people end up being the best places to work.