ODA Architecture Reviews

Since people are treated so differently in this sink or swim environment, some aren’t given enough opportunity to prove their strengths, and they get pigeon holed in the wrong direction or without enough support. Also, running lean teams and timelines without clear standards sometimes leads to messy processes, and management needs to better support those who are disproportionately buried under the mess.

My time at ODA was, by far, the most toxic work experience I’ve had in architecture. The work environment was consistently high-pressure, disorganized and emotionally draining. Leadership-particularly the founder showed a consistent lack of respect for staff, frequently dismissing others’ input, interrupting reviews with personal calls, and fostering a culture of fear rather than collaboration. The workload was excessive and poorly distributed across understaffed teams, with little regard for employee well-being or boundaries. Management decisions were often erratic and poorly communicated. The Director of Operations frequently sent aggressive emails - including demands for weekend work - which only contributed to the tense and unsupportive atmosphere. Ethical concerns about politically sensitive projects were never addressed transparently. It was clear that several people in leadership roles lacked the qualifications or emotional intelligence to manage teams effectively, which further compounded the dysfunction. Unsurprisingly, the firm struggles with extremely high turnover - a direct result of burnout and a lack of respect for staff. I wish I had paid closer attention to the Glassdoor reviews before joining - they were unfortunately accurate.