Blockbuster Reviews in Dallas-Fort Worth, TX Area

Pros

Prior to the new leadership, it use to be a fun, challenging place to work with plenty of advancement opportunities across multiple business lines.

Cons

After the leadership change in 2007, all of the "Best Reasons" went away. No room for advancement now, double the work load because of "downsizing" and less pay coupled with ZERO recognition.

Advice to Senior Management

Try and at least maintain the appearance of caring about your people. Piling on he work load, while constantly decreasing headcount and moving the target, not only leads to employee dissatisfaction, but disillusionment.

Pros

Management generally seems to have an interest in helping employees' career growth, and they are very supportive of their people. The management in my department believed in challenging employees as soon as they were ready for something new. Compensation was reasonably good and you could potentially get a 5% bonus at my level, depending of course on how the company was doing. Employees in my department were generally very happy and felt like their ideas were considered and their concerns were listened to.

Cons

The biggest downside is that it's a dead industry. Unless something drastic changes, most of the stores will probably disappear within the next few years. Sr. Management doesn't appear to think things through all the way. While I was there the company had to lay off a lot of people (many in the Accounting areas) and then had to rehire about half of them less than a month later.

Advice to Senior Management

None. Senior Management has completely changed since my time with the company.

Pros

Learn alot about the movie industry.

Cons

Location is in crime infested downtown Dallas its is scary when working late hours .management was very reactionary and were verbally abusive to their staff. I am not sure if this was just a few bad apple managers, but it reflects a lot that those people get to stick around. The atmosphere was very high pressure and everyone complained about their job, no one was positive about that place and they were always scared about layoffs. A toxic working environment.

Advice to Senior Management

Treat your employees with respect, and create a positive motivating atmosphere.move out of downtown Dallas.

Pros

Free movies and 3 day work week sums up the reason most people want to work at Blockbuster, specifically the Distribution Center. The associates are the best there are and they have to be because they need to make up for where management is lacking.

Cons

Direction of company changes as the wind blows. For example this week it is all about production, next week it is about accuracy and quality, and then it will be about getting product on the trailer before closing. The corporation changed direction with a new mission statement, but the distribution center has not resolve itself on this new mission statement or any other. So there is no clear direction.

Advice to Senior Management

Fix the problem instead of fixing the blame. Because so much resposibilty is place upon associates to be accurate when one makes a mistake the focus is on that person instead of a failed process that needs rehauling. A lot of time is spent in training management on Root Cause Analysis and Lean Six Sigma, but very little is put into practical use. There needs to be less talk and more application of the skills learned.

Pros

The people at Blockbuster are the best reason to work for Blockbuster. The people below the VP level are excellent to people to work with and always willing to lend a hand. There are always plenty of projects to keep you busy. Everyone in the company has the ability to earn a yearly bonus of 5% of your annual salary.

Cons

Senior management is disinterested in their staff at best. Very little thought is given to the rank and file workers. There is always plenty of work to keep you busy. Unfortunately a lot of it is poorly planned, rushed, or horribly under funded by senior management. There is little or no budget for training for new technologies even when they are integral to new projects success and implementation.

Advice to Senior Management

Try to increase moral, especially during this time of transition. Do a better job of looking at the big picture. Weigh the benefits of spending more money and time on the front end of projects rather than try to shoe horn badly implemented and planned initiatives into weak and flawed ideas .

Pros

Free movie rentals. Casual dress code.

Cons

Lay offs. Out sourcing IT to India. Poor communcation from Upper Management.

Advice to Senior Management

I understand that the company needs to cut cost, but the out sourcing to India is a poor move.

Pros

It's a company that's in a transitional period. We're right smack dab in the middle of an old economy brick and mortar retailer and a new, completely digital delivery system. It's very exciting because old models are being smashed every day and new ones are being created by our executive team.

Cons

It's a challenge to create a new business model when customers are still trying to figure out how things like the internet work. We are a recognizable brand name, but it's hard to parlay the value of the services we offer to many in the general public, who still feel that paying for each rental is a way to save money in the long run. Blockbuster hasn't always had the best image in the marketplace, and until now, was not known for being cutting edge or innovative.

Advice to Senior Management

Our Senior Management is putting out all the stops with new initiatives for downloading content and expanding our stores through the merchandising and marketing of games, which is the fastest growing sector of the entertainment economy. Our stores are now really exciting places to go visit, as the decor and feel of the store has changed.