Scary Movie - Anonymous employee Planful Employee Review

1.0
Jan 13, 2021
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Swag that is about it.

Cons

I thought long and hard about posting but have decided it would be morally wrong to let someone start at Planful without sharing how horrible the culture and executive/senior management team really is. Joining Planful was hands down the worst professional experience of my career. It was like being in a scary movie where everything looks nice and sane at the beginning, with a false representation of the company and leadership. My experience was such that quickly after joining it become apparent that everything discussed during the hiring process ended up being untrue, aspirational, and the classic “say one thing do another” based on “business strategy” that literally changed every week. As if by stating everything was a “business strategy” the executive team could make changes with the wind, with little thought to how it affected people’s lives or lively hood - which is the opposite of strategy, it is a shot in the dark. And this was WAY before COVID. Beyond the clear nepotism, favoritism, and obvious exceptions of those who came from the executives or senior managers’ previous companies, this place reeks of personal agendas over business needs. It is a combination of friends and old co-workers who clearly think they are saving a company they are actually making worse with their arrogance. I have never seen a company have such a hierarchy for their size and for a financial analytics company they aren’t very good with their own money. Budgets are a mess. Planful has a fraternity feel in which you have to be in lock-in step, gaslighting is the norm, and managing by fear is the style. The culture is horrible - but you will get a ton of random swag, that’s the companies go-to to say things are positive.

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Planful Response
5y
We do love some good swag and we're sorry that your experience was different to what others are experiencing in our team today. We pride ourselves on creating a culture of meritocracy, success and inclusion regardless of your background. This was especially evident in the past 12 months when we did everything we possibly could to take care of our employees in such a trying time. The reality is, for a company growing at such a rapid rate like we are, business changes and strategic realignment are necessary. We're proud of the fact that we were able to add 100 new employees to our team last year and were able to grow in a pandemic year. In addition we've hit the ground running in 2021 and continue to expand our team and beat our goals. Sometimes things don't work out, and that's ok, but our team and our culture is something we pride ourselves on and we continue to invest in the right areas to make sure all our employees feel supported. We welcome you to reach out to people@planful.com and share any additional feedback you think may be beneficial to us and we wish you much success in the future.

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5.0
Apr 27, 2026
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Pros

Planful is a great place to work and challenge yourself and grow your career. It's a culture that values high ownership, and rewards impactful behavior that drives results. You'll work with a lot of compassionate, smart and collaborative people who care a lot about our work and the finance and accounting people we help serve. Another standout aspect of Planful is the access and exposure to executive leadership, You'll be able to learn directly from ELT and collaborate with them directly. They are not gatekept and are eager to jump into the weeds with employees to problem-solve and move the business forward.

Cons

No company is perfect but the difference between Planful and most other companies is leadership cares deeply about feedback and actioning on it in a timely matter.

4.0
Apr 27, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Having been in the Planful ecosystem for several years, I have seen the company transition through a few different phases. What I can say without hesitation, is there are many high quality individuals that work here, and the culture has always been very strong. I personally feel I've gained a sense of accomplishment, that my job matters and the ability to do my job has never been diminished or jeopardized by a lack of support or resources. Further, the software truly helps customers do their job better.

Cons

Every company goes through ebbs and flows, peaks and valleys, and I think Planful is no different. The company is going through a transition period and I think that can be difficult for some employees to handle; especially those who are newer to the company and don't have the historical context around how and why changes need to be made. Leadership turnover, reductions in force and shifting investments into different areas of the business can cause friction and upheaval, but I believe it can be likened to "ripping off the band-aid." Sometimes, it has to be done and there is short-term pain associated with sudden change. Good or bad, it doesn't necessarily mean that wounds don't heal.

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