[cuppy]

I actually wonder if this means that SF-based startups (or those who are blindly following this 'culture hacks' mentality) are actually worse places to work overall? I wonder if focusing on the quick fixes like free lunch, company trips & ping pong tables ends up outweighing REAL company culture in terms of ROI.

[jonnathanson]

Perhaps, but I think we're missing a crucial point of the article, which is that the culture needs to match the employees. For a startup that wants to hire a bunch of college grads, company trips + ping pong tables + Call of Duty + Friday keg sessions may actually increase productivity. Conversely, for a company trying to hire older, more experienced employees, such perks are considerably less appealing.

I think the general takeaway here is not that X is inherently bad, or Y is inherently good. Rather, it's that you need to know yourself, know the culture you're trying to create, and know the people you're trying to hire, rather than trying to imitate whatever perks happen to be trendy at the moment.

[rhizome]

My sense is that non-SF startups can be inclined to ape these "features." Not all of them, of course, but I've certainly seen it in at least a couple of cases. I mean, here we all are reading about them, right? Lots here don't live in SF, but do take their culture cues from whatever information sources they have. "This is the way they do it in the old country."

[encoderer]

Have you worked at many non-sf-startup companies? Just because you don't have foosball and catered lunch doesn't mean you're doing squat to build a "culture."

[jmspring]

There are a number of people out there who have a very rigid view of what "startup culture" means. I've seen it in first time as well as repeat entrepreneurs. Often they thing hard work, spending free time together, need the perks, everyone will always have the same rah-rah approach.

People have lives, hobbies, different interests. The best companies are those that have a management team that embrace peoples differences, nurture where needed, give space where appropriate, and cultivate a culture where people feel like they are contributing in the way they best can and allowing them paths to grow.