Pros
Expedia provides a focused and competitive environment to learn about the travel industry and how to change and shape it through technology. The size of the company, the diversity of its business units and the speed of execution creates an opportunity to work on numerous projects and receive immediate feedback. Most people are collaborative and are passionate about building products that improve the travel experience for customers.
Cons
Every company has organizations that run counter to the cultural norm. Local Expert is one of those groups inside Expedia. The desire to win has created a culture where the ends justify the means. Employees are publically shamed and belittled in an effort to create urgency. Work is micromanaged and second guessed while communication is poor and decisions are made with little transparency. Ideas that do not fit with leadership’s preconceived assumptions are devalued. Performance goals are often based on opinion rather than data and are subject to change making it difficult to measure your accomplishments. The result of this environment is widespread mistrust, a lack of loyalty to the organization and an unwillingness to try new things or take risks to avoid negative consequences. Career development is rarely discussed and employees are given little support when seeking new opportunities. If you really want to work at Expedia (because overall it’s a great company) and Local Expert is your foot in the door then have a thick skin, understand the environment you are joining and take every opportunity to network with colleagues in other groups which are more aligned to the overall corporate culture.