Booknote: Corporate Crap

Howard Harrison, Corporate Crap: Lessons Learned from 40 Years in Corporate America. Indianapolis, IN: Dog Ear Publishing, 2018. ISBN: 978-1-4575-6614-1.

Genre: nonfiction
Subgenre: humor, business, corporations, memoir
Format: e-galley
Source: NetGalley

Though the book's description states it "takes a humorous look at the business practices that lead employees to look for new employment," readers cannot be sure if this is really a humorous book or not. The book does have some humorous moments, but it also works to be a serious work including various research references in the text and observations. So to be honest, one cannot really be sure if the author is being serious or not. Do note that although he cites articles and studies, the book lacks a formal bibliography and/or works cited page.

The book contains a prologue, 23 chapters, and an epilogue. Some of the chapters' topics are:

• Hiring
• Bosses
• Exit interviews
• Meetings
• Corporate jargon

The book has some pluses and minuses. On the positive, the author has plenty of experience, and he has many tales to tell, some of which he features in the book. The book also has a lot that may speak to corporate workers. Some of it may also speak to academia, though I wonder if that is due to similarities or the fact that academia keeps getting more corporate. On the negative, as I said, the vagueness of the humor. Also the author tries to keep an illusion of neutrality, but it does not always succeed. He can go back and forth taking sides. Rather than sincere, he thus comes across a bit mercenary; your mileage may vary on this.

The book is a relatively easy read with very short chapters. You can just read a bit here and a bit there until you finish it.

Overall, I thought it was OK. Much of the content I've seen in other books about business b.s., so this is not really new or groundbreaking. It is presented in an easy and accessible format. I'd say for libraries this would be an optional selection for public libraries. I would not really recommend it for academic libraries. It makes some good points, and it has some humor, but that is about it.

2 out of 5 stars.

* * * * * 

Additional reading notes. This is a selection of some quotes I wanted to remember from the book with a bit of comment from me. I did jot a few more in my personal journal I am not sharing here:


 Corporate crap can be anywhere in the work world:

"Corporate Crap is not restricted to actual corporations but is practiced in private companies, professional associations, and all other entities that employ lots of people. And despite the emergence of 'virtual' companies, online businesses, and other ways you can make a living today, tens of millions of Americans still commute each day to impersonal, structured office environments where they're treated like they're still in high school" (8).

Where else do you see much of the above? In academia, including academic libraries. That may be the book I write some day when I retire (if I retire).

On poor hiring:

"In fact, most Corporate Crap is rooted in companies' inability to hire the best people to run their various departments and functions. Or is it the people who hire those people? And who hired them? It becomes a chicken-or-egg dilemma. The point is that the subjectivity required to make good hiring decisions is beyond the capability of most people who do the hiring in companies today" (14). 

This is one I agree with the author. He also believes in the old adage of people leaving bosses:

"There is an adage that people don't leave companies; they leave bosses. I believe this. A good boss can garner loyalty even if the employee isn't wild about the company. A boss you don't respect causes you to circulate your resume even if you love the company" (18). 

The bottom line on bosses and supervisors:

"It comes down to being respectful of others regardless of rank. Many people in supervisory positions can't do this. They are too insecure or full of themselves. Even if they have more experience or talent than subordinates (i.e. Tina Fey), good leaders don't flaunt it for authoritative leverage" (21). 

Academics, specially faculty and administrators, often fail at the above miserably. The need to flaunt brag, make sure others know who they are and their proper credentials means nothing gets done more often than not until egos get appeased.

A laughable crock of shit:

"Human Resources had told me that whatever I said would be kept confidential" (25). 

I am sure the author is not the only one lied to by HR. Human Resources is not there for the employees. They are there for the company/institution. It's a lesson workers often learn the hard way. The author learned this truth, and he then learned to never be forthright again. I learned that too as well ages ago. As Don Corleone wisely told his son Sonny, "never tell anyone outside the family what you are thinking again."

A statement of the obvious:

"When asked what the biggest time-waster is in their workday, most employees say meetings" (40). 

On "faking it" at work, and yes, this DOES include academia:

"There is no end to how much we have to 'fake it' in the office or workplace. We have to pretend to like or respect people we don't. We have to fake interest in how people spent their weekends. We join in group praise for others' successes (however loosely defined) even if we think the work sucked. I could go on forever. Acting lessons should become standard fare at business schools" (52). 

Library school should probably include acting lessons too. People have no idea how often we librarians have to "fake it" to make things work or deal with certain patrons (and coworkers, bosses, so on).

The difference between "faking it" and lying:

"When you call in sick when you're not, that's lying. Being polite to rude clients or customers because you have to, that's faking it" (52). 

Something the author does not get that I do not get either:

"I don't get this. If I have a business and need certain things done, and I have people who do those jobs exceedingly well and don't want anything else, why do I want to move those people out of those jobs?" (92).