Hours are crazy long...it's beyond unreasonable and people act like it's normal just to prove to others a facade of dedication to the company. People spend way too much time fooling around the office in activities that are supposed to make you look like you fit in or that you're "cool" and a "competitive athlete" as if we are in the Olympics or something. The late 20s "older management" try to brainwash the younger team into believing that the company is awesome and that we should be grateful for this opportunity blah blah. The fresh grads obviously buy this rhetoric due to their lack of exposure in the professional realm. Also, the management artificially repeats things so often that at one point people will start believing it. If you ever think of voicing your opinion, think again because if you say anything remotely critical, even with the intention to be constructive, your ideas will be immediately shot down. Not to mention they will try to make u look bad for saying it, and you will be ostracized. This place isn't good for the skeptical and questioning employee. If you want to keep your skepticism to yourself and pretend like you manager is brilliant, and just go with the flow for a paycheck, you might like it. But this place is ideal for the passive employee. I should also mention that the pay is waaaay below to national average with the educational qualifications they are demanding. If you divide it by the number of hours worked, we earn minimum wage, if not below. Secretaries in LA make more money. And the management pretends that the equity they gave us is of significant value, and that it will all pay off in the end. Anyone who uses his head will know that the stock options are pennies and that the company is under an illusion that it's growing, and will probably not go public anytime soon (if ever). People try to show off using tech jargon to intimidate others and act like they are tech gurus. Again, another facade covered by cheap rhetoric. If you ever produce something new and innovative, don't expect to receive a pat on the back. Other employees and/or managers will likely criticize it to the ground to act intelligent and to cover up their own failure to deliver creative products. I should also mention they don't want anyone to look better or smarter than them. There is also a huge discomfort and tension with asking your manager or peers for help or even to just answer a question. You look stupid and they expect to to learn their platform and how to build products on your own. Even though the CEO is really a nice guy and truly cares about his company, all the senior management worship him, laugh at his jokes, agree with him on everything, and would probably polish his shoes any day to get his attention and blessing. And the CEO seems to love the attention. The culture is toooo overwhelming with no work-life balance. You will work no less than 60 hrs a week in the office, not to mention you will likely work from home in the evenings as well as on the weekends. If you don't work from home in the evenings after a 12-hr day, you will be seen as lazy. And the office isn't really an office. It's like an old warehouse or McDonald's playground with all the tacky colors. Many people also come to work here because they are desperate to move to California from the East coast or anywhere else. The majority of employees come from out of state or UCSB/ USC. Most employees have truly bought into the fake competitive environment that the management Is trying to force upon us as if it will serve as a catalyst for productivity...and so many try to take your work, shoot down any good ideas you have only to take it and present it to a senior manager themselves later, or "beat you to it" and cut corners amongst colleagues. This is an unhealthy working environment that doesn't promote cooperation in any shape or form. Some managers even artificially start fabricated rumors of layoffs or people who will or have been fired to keep the team on their toes and in fear of losing their job. The company is intentionally isolated in SB to keep employees away from any networking or potential employment opportunities. The company doesn't even give us business cards! We go to no trainings to talks or meetings. Nothing. And the entire 12+ hrs spent at the office are staring at the computer. It's ridiculous, unhealthy, and unsustainable. By the way, I'm almost 100% sure that all the positive reviews on glassdoor are fabricated and written by the findthebest team.
