Everything started out pleasant. Sales were steady, the team was strong and the owners were happy. The company had energy and momentum and the job looked promising.
But, things took a turn for the worst when the owners decided to move to Florida (HQ is located in MN). They became suspicious, paranoid, and untrusting of their employees. The physical distance created a gaping hole between the tightly bonded, well-meaning employees at the office and them. They had cameras installed throughout the building to watch employees and attempt to measure their effectiveness from afar. It’s an extremely creepy feeling to know you’re being watched on camera all day.
Things started to spiral out of control as the owners realized they wouldn’t be able to control every minuscule happening from across the country. So, they lashed out through hostile emails, hid behind their computers, and instructed managers to clean up their neverending pile of messes. Their visits to the office were diasters. Employees were often left in tears while managers and directors spent the following weeks doing damage control. While the CEO acts like a dictator, the woman owner’s interest in the company ebbs and flows between avoiding the office for months then demanding to involved in every decision. The one thing that remained consistent was their lack of respect and human decency for those paying their bills.
The male CEO continuously found himself in hot water. His comments, emails, and jokes were regularly inappropriate. We’re talking about sexist, misogynistic, and demeaning conduct. How can you claim to be a “genius” but be callous enough to repeatedly make these types of comments? How can you work in an office with 90% women and think that’s ok? He can only blame it on the fact that he’s Brazilian and things are “lost in translation” for so long. When I confronted the owners directly about the inappropriate conduct, I was quickly told I was causing trouble for the company and my position was threatened.
I watched the owners groom people, mostly young women, into dutiful employees. It’s not a coincidence that he hires mostly women, it’s done with the intention of control. The male employees in the office were definitely treated differently. At one point the owners said they would have rather employ robots to execute their orders instead of humans who have their own thoughts. I’m not kidding.
Employees had no autonomy and weren’t allowed to implement even the smallest of ideas without their approval. We had intelligent employees with prior careers, degrees, and life experiences who we repeatedly told they had no idea what they were doing. The arrogance was truly astounding. Being a successful car salesman (more like a snake oil salesman) doesn’t make you a successful CEO. No one has all the answers, and asking for help makes you smart, not weak. Listening to other’s opinions allows you to grow, learn and do better. Isn’t that the point of having employees?
Changing the name of this Glassdoor account and purposefully creating a fake bio is a new low (who knew that was possible?!). Does this mean that they are embarrassed by the way past employees feel about their experience at the company? If so, changing their actions instead of the name on the account would be an appropriate response. Yet, what we’re left with is another web of lies.
