Employee's were extremely overworked with very very little time to complete projects. Quick turnaround projects is very real however there is such a thing as not having enough time to complete a project at a level of quality it needs. I was once asked why I could not complete a project on-time and my answer was that I was working on 5 other client projects all having the same deadline that week, I was told that I would need to work more hours after work which became a weekly issue every week. I gave the company feedback saying we needed to hire more designers to help support the workload; their solution was to hire more account and project managers. I once asked a project manager how her workload was, her response was that it was so light that most days she spent it on her couch watching television and if she even thought about a project that she would count it on her timesheet to complete her 8 hour workday. Not only the designers were spread extremely thin, writers too were overly worked. I frequently would have to wait until a day before an internal review (even hours before a meeting) to receive copy updates in order to make design updates. I let my manager know about that issue frequently and her response was to just bug them until they gave me the copy I needed. We were working remotely at the time and there were no activities for co-workers to stay connected in any way; in fact me and my co-workers created virtual events in order for us to stay connected. I also brought this issue up to management and it was never addressed. They do have a bookclub however HR heavily regulates the books that are selected. All of the books spoke to how to be more productive and work harder in the office. I felt like my voice was never heard, my design skills were not utilized to their best ability, and I was used as a cog in a machine quite literally. I believe I was let go because I began to voice my opinions louder to others. Honestly though, being let-go was the best thing to have happened to me because a massive weight was released from my shoulders and I found a studio that very much appreciates me.
