A Troubling Experience - High Turnover, Retaliation, and More - Anonymous employee Understood Employee Review

1.0
26 Oct 2023
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Highly competitive industry pay with an abundance of underutilized talent.

Cons

1. Favoritism and Lack of Transparency: The organization's decision-making processes lacked transparency and were marred by favoritism, which eroded accountability. 2. Clique Culture: A pervasive clique culture stifled fresh perspectives and made it challenging for new employees to integrate into the workplace. 3. Mission Neglect: The company's mission and values were frequently overshadowed by internal politics and personal interests, resulting in a growing disconnect from the original mission-driven culture. 4. Ethical Concerns: Ethical concerns, exacerbated by absurdly high incomes for senior staff, regarding decisions and practices went largely unaddressed. This created a work environment that at times felt toxic and uncomfortable. 5. Nepotism and Favoritism: Nepotism was evident in the workplace, creating an atmosphere where certain employees were favored while others felt marginalized. 6. High Turnover: High turnover was a common theme during my time at the company, with talented colleagues often leaving in pursuit of more inclusive and transparent workplaces or forced to leave. This turnover had a noticeable impact on overall team morale and productivity. 7. Retaliation Fears: Speaking up about issues within the company often came with concerns about retaliation, which discouraged open dialogue and hindered the resolution of problems.

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Understood Response
2y
Thank you for sharing your experience with us, and we do apologize that you had that experience during your time at Understood. In my role as Chief People and Culture Officer, my objective is to ensure that Understood is a place where all employees can thrive. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss your feedback. Please contact me at dwilson@understood.org.

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- Company size is small so you get to meet with nearly every team - Everyone is looking to learn regardless of their expertise

Cons

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1.0
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Pros

The primary strength of working at Understood.org is the people. You’ll likely have the opportunity to collaborate with and learn from an exceptionally intelligent group of colleagues. The benefits package is also a meaningful positive.

Cons

While the organization publicly emphasizes a commitment to an inclusive workplace, the lived experience for many does not consistently reflect those stated values. Issues around diversity and inclusion are noticeable, and there are huge gaps between external messaging and internal culture. I personally experienced microaggressions during my time at the organization, and observed a consistent lack of meaningful accountability when these concerns were raised. From a leadership perspective, there is often a sense of uneven capability across teams, with decision-making sometimes feeling disconnected from frontline realities or lacking in clarity and direction. Career progression, or lack thereof is another red flag worth mentioning. Promotions are limited and infrequent and there is little upward mobility over time despite strong performance.

3
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