I mentioned a few bits of culture shock when I blogged about my first two days at Microsoft. This past week, I’ve almost become obsessed with the differences between the two companies. Yes, OK, there are some major business differences. But it’s the little things that blow my mind.
Here’s a sampling:
| Oracle | Microsoft | |
| Shoes | Dress leathers, brown or black. Definitely stylish and not conservative, but nothing that stands out either. On a casual day, new hiking boots or dark, spotless sneakers pass. | New hiking boots or dark, spotless sneakers are dressing up. Crocs and flip-flops are completely acceptable. |
| Pants | Dress Slacks or khakis. On a casual day with few meetings, neat jeans suffice. | While khakis and neat jeans are quite common, so are shorts and ripped jeans. |
| Shirts | Your standard button-down dress shirt. Tucked in. | Izods and T-shirts. Untucked. |
| Friday team activity | Lunch in the cafeteria. Maybe a trip to Marvin Gardens and a beer. | Snakes on a Plane in Seattle. Beers at either end. |
| Free drinks. in the cafeteria | Flavored sparkling water, sodas. | Sugar-free carbonated fruit drinks, fruit juice, sodas, Windows Vista-branded lemon-lime carbonated water. |
| Cafeteria dishes | Real plates | Polystyrene |
| Cafeteria cutlery | Steel | Plastic |
| Default meeting length | One hour | 30 minutes |
| Latest acceptable hour to propose starting a meeting at HQ | 4 p.m. | 5 p.m. |
| How the help desk refers to problems with beta software | Beta software | Dog food issues |
| Office or cube for individual contributors | Cube | Office (shared) |
| Recreational options | Huh? | Billiards, ping-pong, fooz-ball |
It’s so much fun!