What are pay increases like at Ideals?

Pros: You’ll gain enough transferable skills to qualify for 14 different jobs simultaneously. Strong character development through adversity. Excellent preparation for surviving societal collapse.

Working here is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience because no functioning adult would willingly do it twice. This company has mastered the art of corporate gaslighting at a level that should honestly be studied academically. Every monthly all-hands meeting feels like watching a motivational TED Talk filmed on the deck of the Titanic. Leadership proudly announces how “phenomenal” the company is doing while employees silently calculate whether a 0% merit increase technically qualifies as a hostage situation. The best part is being told you are “so valued” immediately before learning your reward for exceeding goals is… absolutely nothing. Unless you’re a top performer, in which case congratulations on your life-changing 2% increase. Truly exciting stuff in an economy where eggs cost the same as a used Honda Civic. The company also runs on a fascinating business model where employees are voluntold into doing management’s actual jobs. Want to create training materials? Congratulations, you now ARE Learning & Development. Want to update policies? Surprise, you’re Legal now too. Good at your job? Perfect — train six new hires while simultaneously maintaining your metrics because apparently middle management is participating in an experimental silent retreat. There is zero consistency anywhere. Policies change depending on: the department the manager the phase of the moon whether Mercury is in retrograde who leadership had coffee with that morning Calling the organization structure “the Wild West” would actually insult the Wild West, because at least cowboys had some understanding of territory and leadership. Morale is currently somewhere between “post-apocalyptic wasteland” and “group project where nobody answered the email.” Employees leave constantly, but don’t worry — leadership has a very sustainable retention strategy: fresh blood and motivational LinkedIn posts. The remote culture is also incredible. Nothing builds camaraderie quite like sitting alone in your house being told to “do more with less” by someone whose primary skill appears to be forwarding Slack messages with the phrase “circling back.”

Coworkers are pretty great. Pizza gathering once a month

Leadership continues to paint an overly optimistic picture of the company’s financial health, frequently emphasizing strong performance and profitability. However, this narrative feels disconnected from the employee experience. Annual reviews that were expected in January have been delayed with no clear communication, and employees are now being told there will be no retroactive compensation despite the wait. At the same time, employees are being asked to take on increased responsibilities and even step into expanded roles or promotions without any corresponding salary adjustments. For those who have received reviews, the outcomes have been underwhelming—many report raises of less than 3%, or none at all, regardless of performance. There appears to be little to no consideration for cost-of-living increases, let alone meaningful recognition of individual contributions. This has created a workplace where motivation is rapidly declining. When effort and performance are not fairly acknowledged or rewarded, it becomes difficult to justify going above and beyond. There is a growing perception that leadership is intentionally suppressing compensation, potentially to replace tenured employees with lower-cost hires. Culturally, the organization has shifted significantly over the past two years. What was once an employee-focused environment now feels driven primarily by cost-cutting and short-term financial priorities. Morale is low, workloads are increasing, and many previously engaged employees are now feeling undervalued and overextended. This trend is likely to lead to increased turnover. There is also skepticism internally about the company’s strong ratings on public job boards. During an all-hands meeting, questions were raised about the authenticity of these reviews, as they do not reflect the sentiment shared by many current employees. This has further contributed to a sense of disconnect and distrust. Overall, the current environment feels unsustainable, with declining engagement, minimal incentives, and growing concerns about fairness and transparency.