Pros
When I joined NewsCred over two years ago, it was a unicorn. The idea of working with such incredible people, in an amazing culture, and on such a promising product had most people – including myself – energized and excited to be here. Over time, this sentiment has changed drastically. The culture that once was is no longer. While management likes to still tout that people are our best assets and that our culture is amazing, they need to take a harsh step back and realize that there are major problems that have yet to be solved. In the end, I would say that one of the best parts of NewsCred is the people. The unfortunate part is that most of those people are no longer with the company.
Cons
The quality of new hires has drastically declined and is greatly impacting the business. In recent months, the company has brought in many new executives and loves to claim the strength of their "executive bench." In reality, I find these executives to be rather lackluster, to have very unimpressive experience, and to be unknown in the tech space. Although with their attitudes and egos, you'd think they would have greater credentials. There is a great need for a higher level of leadership and management who actually have relevant experience and also have the right vision and belief in the importance of culture. The team as is will never thrive and will certainly not take the company to the next level. The culture has always been catty, gossipy and cliquish. There are those who are "in" - and those people are generally the ones who are superficial and walk the walk that the CEO and execs like to see. Sadly, those who brown nose and play the game with the CEO (aka - tell him how great he is and how much they admire him) are those who thrive. Anyone who tells the truth, says what they think, or *gasp* stands against the norm of the company will never survive. Shafqat likes to push those away who aren't on the same page as him. And sadly those who he keeps are so weak and simple minded that they don't have the capability to actually show him what is right.