Pros
The Clearpay London office itself was great and the workplace team consistently made an effort to keep people engaged. The previous team structure before the reorganisation, felt much more collaborative and had a strong sense of unity and teamwork.
Cons
Worked in the Clearpay London office and found the experience disappointing overall. Strategic direction was heavily driven by the Afterpay team in Australia, often with limited consideration for the UK market. There was a clear hierarchy between regions, with the Australian team frequently displaying dismissive attitudes towards the UK team, which undermined collaboration. The Afterpay CMO relied almost exclusively on the views of direct reports, with little genuine interest in understanding what was or was not working in other markets. There was limited structure around Brand KPIs or performance management. There was no real investment in insight or media planning, and very little understanding of what was delivering results. Media decisions were largely controlled by the Australian team, which meant the UK had minimal influence over strategy and limited ability to tailor plans to local needs. Much of the activity felt rinse and repeat rather than based on data or market specific learnings. A culture of favouritism was evident and feedback was not openly welcomed. Campaigns became repetitive, with similar concepts reused each year. A large number of contractors were hired, many without the specialist experience required, which contributed to internal hierarchy challenges and inefficiencies. Contractors were also excluded from certain UK events, creating a noticeably less inclusive environment. Leadership engagement in the UK was minimal. The current UK CEO appeared focused almost entirely on the sales organisation and showed little interest in building relationships with other teams (which was evident in the office) Global leaders visited infrequently and prioritised the Australian market leaving the UK function feeling overlooked. Culture remained a concern. Diversity across several teams was lacking, and inappropriate comments occasionally went unchallenged during team social gatherings which created discomfort. Morale was low, turnover is high in the overall business and colleagues were frequently let go and later rehired or replaced by contractors adding to instability. Product and marketing innovation felt stagnant. The app saw very little development compared with competitors such as Klarna, and the marketing approach lacked a clear long term strategy, relying heavily on basic test-and-learn tactics rather than structured planning. Overall, the environment felt disorganised, non-inclusive and lacking in strategic direction, with the UK team having limited autonomy or support to deliver meaningful impact.