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COSI (Columbus)

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COSI (Columbus) Reviews

3.7

66% would recommend to a friend

(34 total reviews)

David E. Chesebrough

71% approve of CEO

44% positive business outlook

COSI (Columbus) has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 34 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The COSI (Columbus) employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Arts, entertainment and recreation industry (3.9 stars).

Reviews by job title

34 reviews
3.0
19 Feb 2014

Great experience cut short

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Flexibility within departments to best fit management styles. As a manager, I could organize and coordinate in a way that made sense for me as long as I was achieving needed goals. Strong team dynamic

Cons

Notorious for layoffs every few years. I was included in a round that included 2 15+ year employees. Luckily, I had only been there about a year so it wasn't as hard for me as others. Nonprofits never pay well, but this one is lower than average. Managers start below 30k.

2.0
6 Oct 2013
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great hours, working to educate kids on science, decent pay

Cons

Prepare to feel like an outsider! If you are not into My Little Pony, LEGOs or Star Wars, watch out because you will be a fish out of water. I was out due to an emergency surgery for two weeks WITH doctors excuses and upon my return felt a complete hatred from my supervisors. Nobody cares what is going on in your life, because you are just a replaceable employee to them. The disrespect that stems from the supervisors towards the employees was unsettling and uncomfortable for most. You will be fired without warning, months after supposed infractions, and your badge will be stripped from you in front of everybody.

2.0
6 Dec 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

If you work here for just a couple of months, you will likely have a positive experience. People are generally friendly, the job is mostly quite simple, and hours are flexible.

Cons

There are many cons that become clear after working here for more than a month or two. For one, the expectations are sometimes insane for the amount of money that part time employees here are paid. You will also likely not get more than a shift or two a week as a part-timer, so the income is not sustainable even as a second job. Also know that while people may seem friendly, management is playing favorites. I know of multiple people that lost their jobs or were reprimanded because they confided something in a co-worker they thought was a friend and that person turned around and reported it to a higher-up. People, sometimes managers, will also listen in on conversations and are always looking for something they can tell their boss to get in their good books. This sort of stuff is rewarded by managers. I assume it is because everyone is underpaid and there are very limited opportunities for upward growth in the company, but a lot of people on guest relations and in other departments are just looking for opportunities to throw people under the bus to get ahead and will even occasionally just totally make stuff up. There are a couple of shifts you can work on guest relations that are truly unbearable - sitting by yourself for 8+ hours with only a 30 minute break. Be assured that, at least during the busy season, the team leads will never work these shifts even in the event of a call out or some other unexpected situation. They will always give these jobs to the part-timers and claim that it is because they need to be at the box office, but there are usually 3 or more of them at the box office on busy days so this is simply not true. You will also get in trouble for doing anything to entertain yourself during these shifts, even if hours go by with no guests. If you push back at all on anything, even situations where you have been lied to about expectations for a shift, what someone said about you, etc. you will get branded as difficult and your assignments at work will suffer accordingly. While you may make some great friends here, it is more likely that everything you are saying is being repeated to someone else.

Viewing 1 - 3 of 34 Reviews

Glassdoor has 41 COSI (Columbus) reviews submitted anonymously by COSI (Columbus) employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if COSI (Columbus) is right for you.