A major challenge is the organizational culture and leadership dynamics. Decision-making and recognition often appear influenced by proximity to leadership rather than consistent performance metrics. This can unintentionally reward politics, flattery, or alignment with leadership personalities over independent thinking or constructive feedback.
Communication between leadership and teams is also inconsistent. Expectations can shift quickly, and employees are sometimes evaluated against standards that were never clearly defined or communicated.
Another concern is the tone of internal leadership conversations. In several instances, I witnessed a lack of respect toward team members when they were not present, including dismissive commentary about employees behind closed doors. This was observed across senior leadership most dominantly, including within the C-suite. On any given day you'll find the entire senior leadership sitting and gossiping in a c-suite members office.
This type of culture erodes trust and psychological safety, making it more difficult for teams to collaborate openly or raise concerns.
Frequent structural changes and unclear content and marketing direction further add to the uncertainty employees experience.
