Working at Kanopy made me realize that the reason “passion” is so frequently emphasized in corporate culture manifestos is because it’s awfully easy to exploit. After all, if you really love something, wouldn’t you endure mistreatment for its sake? Feel overworked and overwhelmed? Perhaps you just aren’t “passionate.” I admit that Kanopy isn't the worst offender in the world when it comes to promoting an unhealthy work/life balance. Indeed, technically no one is expected to work overtime, but I observed that some of my colleagues had so much on their plate that they would regularly stay at the office long past 5 pm or continue work from home/on the weekends. I know this is all common for "startups,” and that some have a higher tolerance for this kind of work culture than others, but prospective employees should note that the work/life balance Kanopy promises isn't as stellar as one is lead to believe.
This is a perfect example of why I've always been confused about upper management's use of the word "transparent" in describing the culture at Kanopy. While working at Kanopy, I experienced rampant gossip, secrets, lies, and manipulation, which created a culture of fear and stress. The CEO was often outright rude to employees. Those working under strong managers usually have the best experiences at Kanopy, as these managers shield their team from her negativity. But when employees didn’t have this protection, they seemed much more stressed and dejected. By the time I parted ways with the company, I felt completely disillusioned with Kanopy's mission, which I once so strongly believed in. I know for a fact that I wasn't alone in this sentiment, as some would try to push back. But this often had dire consequences.
Kanopy has an alarmingly high turnover rate. In my first year there, nearly one person left per month (on average). With the relatively small staff that Kanopy has, these departures were very deeply felt. Many very talented, hard-working, passionate people were fired, quit, or otherwise forced to leave, often without warning. Additionally, on some occasions announcements were made to team members detailing why individuals were fired, which I don't think is appropriate. A simple google search would tell any manager that this is not only improper professional decorum, but also generally ill advised. In any case, this created the sense that everyone was disposable, no matter how much they contributed to the company's growth. For this reason in particular, I personally felt that Kanopy showed consistent disloyalty and disrespect for its employees. Yes, occasional offsite team-building activities and a weekly winedown are nice perks, but these gestures of camaraderie feel disingenuous when one considers the near constant staff terminations and other very serious injustices taking place within the company walls.
For example, during my time at Kanopy I observed a particularly egregious lack of support for employees who got seriously ill. On more than one occasion I learned about a colleague's private health matter because of a c-level employee loudly talking to someone about them in the open office. This thoughtless act alone is grossly inappropriate, but it isn't Kanopy's worst offense. I was afraid to get sick at Kanopy since the culture was so unsympathetic. It almost seemed like being out of work for more than a few days due to illness put you at risk for being deemed an undependable employee who couldn’t be trusted to do their job (so much for healthy work/life balance). Based on my experiences, I personally feel that Kanopy does not offer a sufficient work environment for people living with chronic illness.
For all of these reasons, and despite all the wonderful friends I made and talented people I worked with, I ultimately found my time at Kanopy to be a very demoralizing experience that I really can't recommend.
