What Makes Pixar the best Place to work at and Why?

What Makes Pixar the best Place to work at and Why?

Pixar is an animation company based in Emeryville, California. Its founders were Steve Jobs, Edwin Catmull, and Ray Smith. Pixar was the first company in the world to produce computer-generated animation. Its first long film was The Toy Story, which was a massive hit. Since then, Pixar has produced 21 films that had been a great success.  Pixar Animation Studios is the best company to work at.  Pixar is the best place to work because it has an effective and clear mission, a caring leadership, collaborative culture, training of employees, a pleasant work environment, a sense of pride, and it serves humanity.

The first reason as to why Pixar is the best place to work is because it has an effective and clear mission. The mission is a determinant of the company’s direction. The company’s mission is to “combine proprietary technology and world-class creative talent to develop computer-animated feature films with memorable characters and heartwarming stories that appeal to audiences of all ages.”  The clear mission of Pixar makes it easier for employees to understand their role in the company. The animators know that they have to work with technology instead of hand-drawn to produce cartoons. The script-writers are also aware that their stories will be based on how memorable they are and if everyone can relate to them. It is good and less stressful to work in a place where you are aware of what is expected of you.

Caring leadership is another factor that makes Pixar the best place to work at. Every employee likes to know the company they work for cares for them. It makes them happier doing their work. When employees feel valued and appreciated by the company, they have a higher likelihood of going above and beyond for the success of the company. The leadership at Pixar makes sure that its employees feel loved, supported, and important. Each and every person is viewed as an individual and is given an opportunity to grow by learning new skills.

Furthermore, the company has a collaborative culture when it is encouraged to engage and work together as much as possible. Animating is a multidisciplinary job. At Pixar, all employees typically work on one project for a long time. Therefore, cooperation is paramount. Pixar is full of smart, talented, and creative people from who one can learn a lot. Research has shown that there are immense benefits of associating with smart people. Smart people make us smarter. This is because they awaken within us a desire to be like them. Within a month of working at Pixar, employees have found themselves more knowledgeable and professionally energized than they previously were.

Apart from gaining new skills from fellow employees, Pixar offers individual talent management. The talent management supports its employees in taking courses, developing skills, and pursuing certifications relevant to their professional development. The company encourages learning. The animation field is a field that is highly based on technology. Technology is constantly changing, and in order to be at the top of the talent market, learning is a must. Pixar has an online library with articles on the current trends in animation.

There is a sense of pride in working for a company that is successful and well known. The success of a company is determined by its employees and great leadership. There is some level of respect gained from family members and friends by simply being associated with Pixar. In addition, working at Pixar gives one a great reputation in the job market. This is because Pixar is highly rated in terms of employment branding. Pixar is among the best-rated companies in the world. It has a reputation for being among the best in making computer-animated animations. Pixar has never experienced failure. As of 2019, the company had earned 14 billion in the global box office. Moreover, Pixar has been nominated and received a lot of awards. These awards include Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, and Grammy Awards. Top of Pixar executives has also won an award for Golden Lion Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2006.

Another factor that makes Pixar a great place to work is a pleasant working environment. Working in a pleasant environment has significant benefits in terms of productivity and motivation. Such an environment encourages employees to enjoy their time and work and not constantly want to take long breaks to relax. When the campus was being constructed, Steve Jobs made sure that its design would be out of this world.

Steve Jobs envisioned the new campus as a place that promoted encounters and unplanned collaborations.  The design of the campus was to force as many conversations per day as possible and avoid isolation (Vary, 2013). Therefore, the building has an atrium space. The atrium is the central hub for the company. The atrium has a reception, fitness center, café, large theater, and two 40-seat viewing rooms.

Numerous researches have shown the importance of décor in workplace productivity. Pixar harnessed the power of good décor through the design of the beams, artwork on walls, and open spaces. The steel beams used in the atriums are custom made to add aesthetic value to the building. The building had a clean interior slate to promote organic creativity. The offices are not closed cubicles. They are U-shaped consisting of 5-6 individual offices. The campus is not limited to only offices. It also houses a massive render farm, storyboard rooms, and modeling workshops. Furthermore, it has an orchestra and sound recording facilities.

Pixar is also a great place to work because it has realistic standards when it comes to time management. An enjoyable workplace can quickly turn bad because of stress caused by deadlines. At Pixar, the company avoids this havoc, by being realistic with the time allocated for each film. A typical Pixar film takes approximately three years to be done. The management factors a lot of things when it comes to planning out time for the creation of a movie. Furthermore, a full-length movie in Pixar is usually divided into small manageable parts to make it easier for employees to finish the project on time. The time given for movies is enough for mistakes to be corrected, and the results are usually spectacular. The least rated movie produced by Pixar was rated as an A-minus, according to CinemaScore.

Pixar is the best place to work because its work serves humanity. The company’s main aim is to entertain and educate its audience by telling stories that people can relate with. According to Pulizzi (2012), telling stories is a way of showing human nature. Stories are great at relieving stress and increasing happiness. In a world where stress, depression, and anxiety are leading causes of death, Pixar is doing a great service to the world. The animations created at Pixar are not shallow. They are written to create deep and engaging memories that last for a life term. The stories make people think, laugh, and cry. They also challenge their biases and stereotypes.

In conclusion, there are factors that make certain workplaces the best places to work at. These include having an effective and clear mission, a caring leadership, and collaborative culture. In addition, a great workplace should have a pleasant work environment, training of employees, a sense of pride, and it serves humanity.  All these above qualities are present at Pixar. Consequently, it is the best place to work in.