Pros
Steppenwolf does a fantastic job creating high-quality productions, and the workplace is filled with friendly, supportive, and creative colleagues. The ensemble has been comprised of world-class artists for decades, and it’s a real joy and an inspiration to see them practicing their craft. There’s genuinely a lot of potential to make Steppenwolf a truly wonderful workplace, and it’s really a shame to have to watch a nationally recognized staple of Chicago’s vibrant theater community eating itself from the inside out due to poor management.
Cons
Steppenwolf has major institutional problems, which mostly stem from its erratic and poorly administered corporate structure overseen by a privileged and out-of-touch executive team. For a nonprofit that markets its brand as a forward-thinking, equitable, inclusive, and people-focused institution it’s really shameful that they don’t practice any of those values on the inside. • The compensation gap between senior management and regular employees is obscene. It took a labor union to get frontline workers even the simplest common-sense compensation package (annual cost of living raises, minimum call time, and a fixed base payrate); meanwhile, ED and Artistic Directors were raking-in six-figure salaries (which we know because nonprofit 990 forms are public record, and we can see exactly how much you paid in compensation to senior management figures each tax year). . Senior management is extremely hostile towards workers, dismissive of their concerns, and approaches conflict resolution in a disrespectful and belittling way. Nobody takes any accountability, everybody points fingers at somebody else, and leadership is quick to transfer the burdens of its own failures onto staff. • This is a seasonal repertoire company, so there are periods of the year when the theaters are dark; during these periods, workers are thrown out in the cold and receive no pay for weeks if not months, but they’re expected to remain loyal and return to work when a show finally does happen. It’s not a sustainable model for either the business (it contributes to high turnover and a constant need to waste resources on rehiring/retraining staff) or for the employees (who end-up burdened with oppressive and unreasonable financial hardships). They used to do this only to the people working the lobbies, but they started doing it to the poor bartenders too after they joined a union. • During the pandemic, while they were going through an extended closure and not making any revenue, they sank millions into an excessive building/restoration project, which has left them in a financial tough spot. They decided the best way to alleviate their financial woes was to punish their dedicated and passionate workforce with wage-cuts, promotion-freezes, and layoffs … meanwhile senior management is still taking home disproportionately large salaries.