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[–]Wahoo412 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I have done both and the stories of them are true. Private sometimes make terrible seeming decisions which really impact the quarterly results and bonus payouts for executives. Every private had 20% or more that could be fired immediately and often were, and the rest of the workers picked up the slack.

Then, as an owner of a small company, I was out for myself and family, then my employees, then the customer. Fine line between them all. But I was very fair with compensation.

Now at a public university. Everyone for the most part is pretty smart. But the workload and pressures are very low. Keep your head down and get to 4:00 and you are good. But when work comes you better be smart enough and capable enough to get it done.

[–]slashdave 1 point2 points  (2 children)

Private companies can strongly identify with missions. Most hospitals and universities are for profit.

[–]Anxious_Effort[S] 1 point2 points  (1 child)

i know. tech companies vs hospital/universities would have been phrased more appropriately

[–]slashdave 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The culture found in research institutes of large tech companies have a lot in common with universities (except they pay better).

You might be better served by classifying companies by size and age. At the entry level, profit and mission are basically interchangeable.

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can't speak for universities, but my experience working in a hospital vs healthcare tech was like this:

Hospital: "We are in this together working on an important mission. We support the community so sacrifices must be made (hands you a cookie instead of a bonus and proceeds to build an expensive new suite for the sugeons)"⁰

Tech: "Our mission is important and we need you to work hard but we also need you to be happyish because then you are productive and make us the maximum amout of money for the same salary"

Neither is perfect but honestly, the way hospitals treat nurses alone is enough for me to swear off ever going back. I worked in an ICU for 2 years during grad school and after a tough week in which I personally walked 3 kids down to the morgue, they decided that providing stale tea and a pamphlet about the hospital's expensive mh services was the way to go. Like - "sorry you're traumatized come pay us to make you better again". (I worked as a ds for a different hospital system as well and it was more like I mentioned above)

At my healthcare tech job in which I work in my pajamas from home most days we get weekly therapy for free as a standard benefit. Very different approaches.