Values Betrayed by Incompetent Leadership - Anonymous employee Mad Collective Employee Review

2.0
19 June 2023
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I've been working at Mad for few years already. It's necessary to highlight that the greatest strength of the company lies in its talented workforce - brilliant minds among employees and some managers / execs. Working alongside people who possess exceptional skills and a proactive approach has been very motivating experience, as well as like-minded personal values, which helped to foster an engaging culture and effective work environment. Good work conditions allowing flexibility between on site / hybrid or remote work, decent amount of holidays and other perks like covered medical insurance, lunches at the office and company events.

Cons

It is with great disappointment that I express my current sentiments about the company's trajectory. While it once thrived as a vibrant and promising workplace, the decision-making and leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a significant decline in many aspects of the organization. Company's CEO and founders failed to seize the opportunity to introduce obviously necessary improvements, thereby since the challenges appeared the true nature of the CEO and founders emerged. The beautiful values that were once promoted within the company turned out to be nothing more than illusory facade, cynically employed as a superficial motivational tool rather than genuinely embraced principles. The decision-making process was plagued by incompetence of CEO and former VP of Product Strategy, the philosophies applied and imposed by the founders were outdated since they persistently believed that what worked for them a decade ago can be successfully applied in current state. Consequently, there has been a consistent decline in many areas and enormous pressure on all the teams without any allocation of necessary resources. The CEO has been absent from the forefront of the company's main product for more than 2 years and his communication was exclusively with the executive team and founders. It is only when faced with mounting challenges that he reluctantly initiated closer interactions with line managers and employees, revealing himself to be a narcissistic imposter. Frequently boasting about his past position at Expedia, he offers no substantive or competent ideas to rectify the current challenges. This has created an environment where talent and innovative ideas take a backseat and employees are suffering forcibly deployed micro-management, contradicting all the preached values, leaving them disillusioned and demotivated.

Explore other reviews about Mad Collective

3.0
13 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Good colleagues, lots of like minded, young people who are eager to have a good time and work creatively.

Cons

Upper management had little regard for the worker bees. They provided benefits like work retreats and lunches, but when it came to promotions, HR disputes, and stressful time periods, upper management could be ruthless. When money was tight, they were quick to make layoffs. Little room for growth within career path.

1.0
11 Aug 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Some genuinely good and talented colleagues Before COVID, decent benefits and bonuses

Cons

Toxic leadership is the company’s biggest issue. Many top managers lack the skills, experience, and professionalism needed to run the business effectively. Decisions are often emotional, erratic, and influenced by personal agendas rather than sound business judgment. A notable portion of leadership advanced through favoritism and personal connections rather than merit and proven ability, creating an environment where poor management is tolerated or rewarded. This results in a toxic culture marked by micromanagement, inconsistent expectations, and high instability across teams. Some teams are somewhat functional, but many face constant mismanagement, low morale, and rapid turnover. Leadership regularly ignores employee concerns and refuses to take responsibility for mistakes. During the forced unpaid leave (ERTE), employees were pressured into accepting fake projects or forced to leave otherwise. Some were even threatened with management of their new companies being contacted, or this was actually done. Several employees reported not only abusive behavior by some managers but also widespread incompetence and ineffectiveness throughout management. Despite these serious concerns, HR took no meaningful action to address them. The main product is unstable, built on outdated, error-prone code, with constant issues and minimal real improvements. Management prioritizes aggressive upselling and revenue over fixing core problems. Reckless spending on doomed projects, most notably the KetoDiet, which was clearly flawed from the start and drained resources that could have improved the company. Work environment varies greatly by team, with some so poorly managed that turnover is extremely high.

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