Pros
Exciting clients. Technically unlimited PTO. Flexibility (since working from home) to be able to take off for doctor, dentist, therapy, telehealth etc. Would not say the same when working in office. Form great relationships within the industry with partners and clients. Pre-COVID downtown parking pass that could be used 24/7/365. Downtown office location great for after work events, shows etc.
Cons
- No benefits beyond basic medical, dental and vision. No retirement plans/matching or stipends for phone/internet. Only some employees get computers and other necessary items, many use personal computers and spend out of pocket for necessary items. For some things they will offer to reimburse you but the process is so hard because expenses and expense reports were not regularly vetted or approved by leadership. - A lot of things felt like if it’s wasn’t a problem for those in leadership then it likely isn’t a priority or going to get fixed. - Depending on the season and your clients there can be a lot of night and weekend work. Expected to be available 24/7 for any issues that may arise on top of 45+ hours per week. Was not uncommon to get a text at 9pm or 6am saying you needed to get online to work on something. Worked on major holidays including getting texts on Christmas morning. - Very hard to take PTO because there was too much work and no one else had the time or energy to assist without pushing themselves to the brink. Leadership would promise to help but often end up texting you or flaking so it would just be easier to do it yourself. - Very high turnover. - No HR department or person. No accountant/money person. - No diversity. - Push back when you ask for updates on things you are owed like W2s (we got them on April 21, 2021), paychecks, salary updates after a promotion etc. - Management is unreliable. If you need something from them it could be days or weeks before you even get a moment of their time which can make it very hard to get things done. One of the hardest parts of working here was waiting on things you were promised or times for calls/conversations from leadership. It’s draining and really hard to continue to do your job and stay motivated. - It always felt like they don’t actually want your opinion. I have numerous cases where we were asked for our thoughts on something and then when we gave them, if they didn’t align with what they wanted us to say, we were essentially chastised via Slack, called ungrateful, told we were lucky we hadn’t lost our jobs and more. - You will do work that isn’t what you were hired for. Lots of marketing employees worked social media projects alone even though it wasn’t their world/experience and they said numerous times that they wanted to do more of what they were hired for. - Leaders cancel meetings and then drag it out saying they’ll reschedule and just never do. Or you’ll get on calls with them and they never show up or acknowledge it, a huge waste of time and disrespectful to your employees. - Lots of calls and texts to your personal phone during and after work hours from clients. No sort of compensation for work use on personal phone. - Tracking software used during COVID to see how many hours everyone was working. You got in trouble if you worked less than 8.5 hours each day or your “productivity” percentage (how much you moved your mouse) was below a certain percentage. This program seriously messed with people’s heads and mental health and unfortunately it took them a year of using it (and many employees leaving) to decide it was detrimental.