Very Poorly Managed Company…BEWARE NEW HIRES! - Account Executive Specific Media Employee Review

1.0
18 Nov 2013
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Peer culture is great and for the most part everyone is very supportive (outside of management).

Cons

For a mid-sized company, SM is very poorly managed and disorganized with lack of resource allocation and efficient systems in place. Most of the employees have been there for years, but for a new hire coming in, the training (lack thereof) and support system leaves a lot to be desired. Be prepared to be set up to fail from the beginning. Certain offices in the company are managed very much like a frat house with new employees expected to pass a series of "hazing" tests. The culture is very much, "not a good fit until proven otherwise" instead of being a culture of positive reinforcement and support for new hires, whom management chose to bring in. Management will not spend any time with new employees and little to no training will be given (other than that which comes from sitting with peers). Inter-office communication is very poor and there's a lot of unnecessary politics, which are just overkill in such a small office. Staff are not treated as empowered professionals, but rather, like overgrown college students (complete with written tests, hazing, team competitions and micro-management). This company will be a very frustrating experience for someone with tenured experience at a traditional media giant who has been trained in being a brand ambassador and marketing partner to senior level clients. For these individuals, throw all of your training out the window and do the opposite of what your instincts tell you to do (except for if your instincts tell you to run screaming in the opposite direction). Good luck!

Explore other reviews about Specific Media

5.0
12 Oct 2021
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I really enjoyed my time there.

Cons

I had no cons while working there.

3.0
15 Nov 2010
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

You'll definitely get lots of interesting projects in a challenging timeframe. Management is flexible with regard to time off, and my direct management, at least, was very results driven. Salaries, while just a little bit low, are reasonably competitive. Snacks are provided, lunch is catered every month, and the holiday parties are quite the shindigs. If you are on the right team senior management will leave you alone to do your job.

Cons

Senior management at this company values saving face and making money above *all* else. However, because of this, they tend to cut off their nose to spite their face. Terrible management and resource allocation decisions are made for political reasons, and sometimes for no discernable reason at all. A geographically diverse management structure makes for turf wars and resource starvation for critical infrastructure, and while HR is well intentioned and competent, their influence is very much limited with senior management. Because of that, extremely abusive situations have happened and took much longer than necessary to rectify, causing a significant amount of turnover and brain drain.

3
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