#culture

So apparently, throwing darts are the new operating model. Town hall highlight of the year: Head of IT + CFO confidently announce that “No other companies have figured out AI governance… but we will.”

The silence afterward? You could hear a budget being cut in real time. This is coming from leadership that still treats basic project tracking like it’s emerging technology. But wait, it gets better.
Our fearless IT leader sends the brand-new “Head of Data” out of the country to “vet options” we aren’t even authorized to implement. Bold strategy.

Minor detail: this individual’s experience in data and technology appears to be limited to creatively rearranging LinkedIn buzzwords. If résumé fiction were a programming language, we’d finally have expertise. Because promoting someone with no clue in the space worked out so well last time… why not run it back? Now the plot twist: they’re stuck abroad due to regional conflicts and travel disruptions. You truly cannot script this level of tragic corporate comedy. We can’t align on reporting standards, but we’re about to solve global AI governance. Sure.

Next town hall prediction:
“We’ve decided to skip governance and move straight to vibes.”

Leadership is clearly not up to the task to turn this company around. Stock got a bump but regressed, NA volumes aren't working even with PPA investment and acquisitions, and we're getting the shaft with low team score and merit raises. At what point do we collectively say we aren't going to work to execute shoddy decisions that cost us money?

I’m honestly having some regret about taking this job, especially after finding this forum. I wish I had come across these comments before accepting the offer, but here I am. Is it really as bad as people describe?

I started in January and my role is remote, but based on what I’m reading, it sounds like that could change at any time. I also don’t really feel like part of the team yet. I assumed it was just because I’m still new, but now I’m starting to wonder if this is just the culture here.

Is this how most people feel? Is everyone just quietly checked out?

This concern is to address ongoing situations regarding the handling of confidential information within lower management on the Central Review Team.

It has come to everyone’s attention that confidential employee matters and sensitive information are being discussed or shared with individuals (the su-k ups) who do not have a legitimate business need to know. This behavior raises serious concerns about privacy, professionalism, and adherence to company standards.

Maintaining confidentiality is not optional it is a fundamental expectation in any professional workplace. When management personnel share private information inappropriately, it undermines trust, damages team morale, and creates an uncomfortable work environment for employees who expect discretion and integrity from leadership.

Beyond being unprofessional, this conduct may place both employees and the organization at risk. Leaders are expected to model ethical behavior, protect sensitive information, and ensure discussions about employee matters remain limited to appropriate and authorized individuals.

It's a serious questions. I am curious what the board thinks. I think we lost every incentive to innovate and we also see what's going on the exec level, so why bother.

Odd that people are announcing retirements that haven’t discussed it before… I had my job eliminated and was given the choice to say if I was retiring or not. I responded with “just tell people what you did” rather than deal with colleagues congratulating me on retirement when it is really a termination. Is this a company tactic to make them look better?

I don’t know how Macy’s “reclassifying” some people’s positions affects store employees, but everyone who was hired as a “flex position” for corporate side of things has to return to office 4 days a week. They’re doing construction of the office floors at Herald Square in NYC, but what are they changing exactly? They’re adding assigned desks and taking away conference rooms. Have a meeting you need to attend and there’s no meeting rooms available? Their advice was to just go walk through the store and take your meeting.
They’re offering 0 incentive for employees that can completely do their jobs remotely to return to the office 8 hours a day 4 days a week. They want us to “cowork in a creative environment” while being surrounded by beige walls, desks/cubes with no privacy, fighting over meeting rooms just so they can justify having all of that space and its cost.
Snacks? Better coffee? Maybe some other colors than red and beige and white and black? Nope! But come into the office because we are watching you!
They also do not consider the amount of employees they have working there that do not live within NYC. Have wages raised? No, but the cost of transportation sure has from the Long Island railroad to NJ transit to the MTA subway and bus fares.
I don’t know that this company is gonna last much longer. They really only have the 100th year of the parade this year going for them.

Is it just me or has anyone else not been asked to provide KO feedback on their managers the last 5+ years?

What is DXC going to do in order to protect its employees from the effects of war and mitigate its impact on us? For now all we got was pushing towards "extra vigilance to protect business" but how about us? Prices will go up, there is stress, and all they can do is trying to force us to some kind of extra care for the business? What the heck?

Sometimes it feels like people are rooting for layoffs with the way they keep predicting them. Every other post tries to guess the date, as if saying it enough will make it happen. When something is official, we will hear about it. Until then, maybe stop tempting fate.

I’ve worked in tough places before, but nothing this openly dismissive of basic respect.

Once I stopped obsessing over the highest possible pay, I found tons of opportunities. I want a place with actual culture and job security, all things Medtronic lacks. Less money, sure, but 15 percent less is worth it for my sanity. Interviews are already lining up.

You would think these are the rough guys of the industry, but man, the view gals look like scholars.

No hope, stripe is the top 1, due to their innovation , r n d, great work life balance, top notch salaries, fedex, also uses stripe, similarly toast took over clover, people still working here dont have talent to find jobs outside, and are ok with being slaves, getting no annual increments, spending 8 to 8 in the office, producing nothing but keeping the lights on, the legacy products need 10 people tl run them, no hopes, wonder how the vps, svps sleep at night working on such products and paying the slaves peanuts year after year! Jesus christ

Who wants to see Rick taking client support calls for a year with the salary to go along with this position?

BD life sciences just joined Waters a few weeks ago and we have been trying to get a sense of the culture, benefits, salary increases, bonus, PTO days, promotion rates or lack of them, etc.

We still have the BD benefits until end of year but after that I assume it will change to Waters benefits after.

So far we have not given any info on how things will change. Any insights are highly appreciated

I do not remember it feeling like this before. There is a level of fakeness that feels excessive. Conversations that feel transactional. People who can be vindictive, rude, and in some cases honestly cruel. Not openly aggressive, just quietly cutting. It's really kept pulling on me.

I do not have these issues outside of work. That is what makes it unsettling. It makes me wonder if something about the environment changes people, or if I was just naive for a long time.

I had a rough year, so I have tried to account for that. I have tried to tell myself maybe I am just more sensitive right now. But it feels bigger than that. Over the last few years I have slowly lost faith in the culture here, and what scares me most is feeling that cynicism creep into how I see people in general.

I do not want to believe this is just how people are.

Has anyone else experienced this, or is it just me?

so many roles (cdm, csp, ecsp, dcsp,pl, solution advisors, pmo,architects , cas etc.. so many people managers of inner circle with headcounts moved from different teams just maintain people managers.
no womder share price going down

Meetings are being held (in person and Zoom) to encourage and push branch offices to use co-pilot.

Whereas the HO witnessed this type of hype in their "new system processes," which later showed itself as a RIF, so too will the field. It may take a couple of years, but its coming.

NEW employee slogan: "Participate in your own demise at EJ" ....instead of:
"Together We Serve" which really means "together we serve ---> the ELT."

Every day I log in to work and think, why the fu-k am I still here?

The pay sure as he-l isn’t keeping me around. My manager looks like they’re one bad meeting away from quitting, and the people reporting to me are obviously trying to get the he-l out. It feels like I’m standing in the middle of a slow-motion collapse, pretending everything’s fine while everyone else is quietly polishing their résumés.

At this point, it’s hard not to wonder what the he-l I’m even sticking around for.

Hey guys, as you all know there was a recent layoff where a lot of employees were affected.

I was one of the ones impacted as well.

So I just want to know how everything feels workload/atmosphere wise?

Any chances Sabre will recall some employees?

Heard Desmond thinks the south shouldn't work on ge motors due to getting injured working on them. Sounds like he wants to make the south smaller and road truck sites.

Mass Market is actually comedy.
They went into a full week “lockdown”… just to come back out and say, “We need to move faster.”
That’s it? That’s the breakthrough?

Let's call it what it is.

There's a particular kind of cruelty that doesnt scream.

No permanence. No space. No autonomy. Police in the lobby. Badge logs. Presence monitored like attendance in detention.

Five days in office — not because the work demands it,
but because control does.

And then you ask:
"Why is the morale low?"

Dignity doesnt disappear overnight.
It erodes — policy by policy.

Engineered humiliation that nobody deserves, it subtle.
It smiles in town halls.
It calls itself "transformation"

Loyalty isn't dead.

Respect is.

It baffles me why anyone is using the term “Leadership” followed by the description of what a lead, boss, manager, or executive is. It has been several years or more since I have seen a true Leader here. Unfortunately, those that were or could be have been stifled. Their voice and empowerment silenced, unable to lead due to the constraints imposed by management and executives.

Reminder of what Leadership is…

LEADERSHIP is the ability to influence, inspire, and guide individuals or teams toward achieving a common goal, often by fostering collaboration, motivation, and positive change. It is a set of behaviors—not just a title—focused on setting direction, building trust, and unlocking team potential to navigate challenges.

This is a rhetorical question.

I think we'll, for once, have a thread where people agree on the response.

Sit back, relax. We will continue to contract out all the actual work. Do a bit every day, just to stay in shape, everything else will be contracted out.

Saw this on LinkedIn today, what a joke! I don't work at Kyndryl anymore, but I remember my time there and it was brutal. Leadership constantly switching to the next big thing, reorgs every 3 to 6 months, managers who didn't have a clue about what was going on internally or on projects, and a workforce with very low morale. And now "Most Loved Workplaces." Maybe things turned around quickly, lol. I don't think so.

to sc--w stockholders. 13 % price drop in 5 days. You defenders will say market economics are to blame, nonsense! If they had built the franchise and gotten the stock to a level it should be this would be a blip, it is not. Remember PNC as a regional competitor close to us has grown and more than doubled their share price last 5 years. I wonder if there’s any angst in the C suite or by this Board? Probably not.

They're mostly just tools to push people out. Rarely do they reflect someone’s real performance, or the value in terms of skills, experience, or productivity. And let's be honest, the higherups aren’t exactly brilliant either. Hard to see much of a difference, and that really says something.

Every single winner of this award has derailed their team project in one way or another. They don't have knowledge or skills and don't know what they are doing. I've never met one that's inteIIigent. They just know how to fake their way through the work day. And Truist never questions who really does the work behind the scenes. I would be ashamed to get this award.

Seriously. Just look at LinkedIn profiles of past upper management and others and you'll see how they took jobs in the industry immediately.

I don’t even care if I give myself away on here, because I need to say this.

Over time, I’ve noticed a consistent pattern in how several senior directors operate, I’ve seen certain leaders target employees outside their own unit through gossip, and finger pointing.
When issues arise, the focus rarely lands on the behaviors or decisions of the senior directors that contributed to the problem. Instead, pressure is redirected onto others.

This is especially prevalent from GP&T Product and Sales senior directors.

I try to be transparent about what I know and what I don’t. When I ask questions for example, whether a specific person is the right contact for client obligations or duties, the response is often disproportionately hostile.

Today was a straw that broke the camel’s back situation. I tried being helpful and instead was responded to as if I was a schmuk (and maybe I am) but to the Sales guy, you could have used a little more tact especially at your level.
“Period!” (your own word)

I took it personally and it ruined my mood going into the weekend. I’m not ashamed to admit that I teared up.

If anyone has gotten both an AI written review but also gotten more than an “achieving”. Like yeah, you’re great, but still not great enough for me to put thought into my own words.

They want our business as customers but treated us like piece of sh-t this performance review period. My middle finger never been this strong.

We're stretched thin, underpaid, and drowning in work, but they keep organizing these mandatory happy events. Last month our manager brought snacks while pretending our 60-hour weeks don't exist. Is this just us? If not, does anyone actually feel better after these things? What would real acknowledgment even look like?

Anyone else think the current COA metrics and stipulations are a joke? From my perspective, the expectations feel misaligned with the operational realities many recruiters are facing.
I genuinely appreciate the hard work and dedication of our top performers. However, I think it’s important to acknowledge that some of those team members have access to additional resources—such as administrative support—that significantly reduce their non-recruiting workload. Other recruiters are expected to meet similar performance standards while also managing administrative responsibilities independently. This creates a perception of inequity across the team.
Historically, many tenured recruiters managed large principal headcounts—often 60–80 coa—without additional support and while serving as the sole point of contact. Those titles were earned through sustained performance under challenging conditions. While compensation structures and business models have evolved, the current expectations combined with reduced support and compensation pressures are contributing to morale concerns.
There also appears to be inconsistency in how resources are allocated. Concentrating support around select individuals may drive strong results for a few, but it can unintentionally limit broader team growth and development. A more balanced distribution of resources could potentially create stronger, more sustainable performance across the organization.
Additionally, low level recruiters continue to absorb responsibilities outside of traditional recruiting scope—particularly in areas where ownership of process and payroll has shifted. When placement teams are not fully owning those processes, recruiters are often required to fill the gap. This increases workload without a corresponding adjustment in expectations or compensation.
Finally, I believe leadership alignment and transparency are critical during times of change. There are individuals within recruitment who bring deep institutional knowledge and strong operational leadership. Ensuring that the right leaders are empowered to guide strategy and execution will be important for long-term success. There needs to be advocating for equity, clarity in expectations, and a structure that supports both high performance and team-wide growth. The recruitment team deserves a win not more unrealistic goals thrown up against the wall hoping it sticks.

See this review in LinkedIn
Full details from post in the comments
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-7427118095061819392-rD0R?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios&rcm=ACoAAAdeT6sBq6HR8cmvn-Ypy8_0uJhVxf9JjF4