Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic) Reviews

Former Employee – worked at Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic) full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – great dedicated volunteers and service oriented staff.

Cons – dysfunctional top management not customer or employee focused. Arrogance permeates management. Inability to bond with key federal departments for support. Deliberate vagueness of direction to avoid accountability. Poor ineffective communication.

Advice to Senior Management – define organization structure, clearly present chain of command, develop clear precise unambiguous job descriptions. send President to "charm school".

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic) full-time for more than a year

Pros – Good mission, a great service for those who need their special audiobooks, and work hours are not bad.

Cons – Layoffs come often, as management apparently can't achieve their goals and then get rid of people below them via "organizational restructure" twice in as many years. There are some in leadership positions who seem to think they're geniuses because they've read some self-help books. Received no training and just had to pick things up as I went along.

Advice to Senior Management – Take a look in the mirror: perhaps the problem lies there.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic)

Pros – Passion for the cause of helping kids with learning differences -- everyone was knowledgeable, well-read, considerate; many had or knew kids with learning differences

Cons – Senior management too dismissive of front-lines employees; cliquish; chronically under-resourced; lack of professionalism; performance reviews based on personal opinions rather than objective performance

Advice to Senior Management – Ask, and then listen to, those who are closest to your end customers; drop the hubris

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic) full-time for more than 7 years

Pros – Great work/life balance, truly admirable mission [on paper] and organization goal.

Cons – Stagnant pay, culture of fear/constant surprise terminations, major goals from the top down change on a near-monthly basis and you're always the last to know...sometimes costing jobs.

Advice to Senior Management – You're in the wrong business - no nonprofit experience among the senior leadership, often astonishing arrogance and dismissiveness from the CEO and other major players, highly emotional head of H.R. has disproportionate power and has created a culture of fear.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic) full-time for more than 10 years

Pros – The mission was the reason to work for these people, now the mission is making money to support senior leadership esp the CEO. The benefits WERE good, but those were cut drastically to keep Sr "leadership" in the money.

Cons – CEO makes a disproportionate amount for a small nonprofit. Sr Leadership are overpaid, emphasis on sales. Ridiculous unknown expectations, no clear cut job descriptions. No nonprofit experience at upper levels, culture of fear & misrepresentation of product. Out & Out liars.

Advice to Senior Management – Sell out & give this nonprofit a fitting burial or buyout to people who actually care.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic)

Pros – mission-driven, good work-life balance, excellent volunteers, great "product"

Cons – Overall the management team seems to enjoy running the organization secretly. They convene many meetings of senior management and hint to other members of the organization about the future direction of the organization, but never really clarify what that is. Many, many bad hires - lots of boys club type of hires, not too smart, not too talented.

Advice to Senior Management – Just wearing jeans to work every day does not make you an innovative, entrepreneurial organization. Try listening to your staff and cultivating the talent you have in house.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic) full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Volunteers are passionate about the mission. The overal mission is a worthy cause.

Cons – Senior Management has no non-profit experience and have misrepresented the value of volunteer hours on the organization's 990. The 403 (b) match was eliminated. The organization recently lost a Federal Grant that supported close to 50% of its budget.

Advice to Senior Management – No advice can help the senior management team.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company