Great Team, great workplace - Information Security Officer Capital One Employee Review

Cons

lots of changes, processes are not always efficient

Cons

I’m puzzled about how Capital One’s reputation as one of the top workplaces is upheld. Although the compensation and benefits meet the mark, the corporate culture is hindered by the practice of stack ranking. When I first joined, I didn’t anticipate its significance, but it has led to two major points of contention. To start, they consistently evaluate employees using a fluctuating curve, resulting in some falling short in comparison to their peers. This is not uncommon in workplaces, but it means that even if you’re an exceptional employee who is slightly outperformed by colleagues, you could end up on a performance improvement plan or even face termination. Regardless of your overall competence, your relative performance is the key factor, and your ranking is determined by how well your manager portrays you to their bosses. The second issue stemming from stack ranking is the transformation of colleagues into rivals instead of teammates. Due to its zero-sum nature, people become possessive of their work, occasionally hoarding knowledge or projects. Consequently, the culture becomes counterproductive to collaboration, lacking essential team camaraderie. What’s frustrating is that this can lead to subpar products due to the absence of teamwork. A significant amount of time and effort is directed toward self-promotion and outmaneuvering colleagues politically, rather than channeling energy into producing excellent work. While the situation might evolve, as long as stack ranking remains in place, it’s difficult to envision Capital One as a hub where innovation through teamwork is genuinely practiced.