Sad and disappointed to uncover a truly toxic culture - Marketing Handshake Employee Review

1.0
Nov 15, 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I've met some of the smartest, most wonderful people through Handshake. It’s such a shame they’ve been systematically pushed out or live in fear of being fired if they don't blindly play leadership’s political games. Once my favorite job due to the fair pay, decent benefits, great flexibility, and coworkers who became friends, Handshake doesn’t feel like a place where I can sustainably continue my career.

Cons

As others have stated, the CEO makes impulsive decisions, and senior leadership follows suit. During my year and a half here, I’ve seen 4 C-suite execs pushed out and have watched the only VPs I’ve respected resign because they can’t take the toxicity anymore. Those who have stayed take the same dictatorial approach that the CEO does (I have more authority than you, so just do as I say). The only way to progress is to play the political game, which in many cases means undermining others and taking sole credit for work that was a team effort. Those of us who find this behavior morally repulsive are left with few prospects, and anyone who pushes back expects that their job is likely on the line. The company isn’t doing well due to mismanagement so layoffs continue to be on the table. Unsurprisingly, the naysayers always manage to make the list. If the mission of this company resonates with you, I can almost guarantee the culture will not. They’re in direct conflict.

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Handshake Response
2y
Thank you for sharing your candid thoughts about your experience. There have been multiple changes in the C-suite and the extended leadership team, as you noted, which we feel are in service of aligning our leadership with the future goals of the company. Our leadership team meetings are spaces of lively conversation, where everyone can comfortably and safely push back against ideas with which they disagree (including those of the CEO). Moreover, we strive to engage all Handshake employees – whether C-suite, VP, front-line manager, or IC – in active conversations about their work, but in the interest of efficiency and speed, this cannot always take place. We hate to hear that you feel that individuals’ work is undermined or that people are not getting credit for their work, and we hope that you and others report these issues through the appropriate internal channels so we can investigate accordingly. All employees at Handshake are held to the Company Principles, and we certainly expect VPs and other high-level leadership to “Set the pace and tone” and “Own the impact”. Again, we very much appreciate your feedback and take your concerns seriously.

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Cons

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2.0
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Pros

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Cons

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