Where do you start... This company is in a mess. It's seriously biased towards events and subscriptions, if you happen to work in advertising, don't for a second expect the same level of investment in your product as they are all plummeting in effectiveness and the company pretends everything is OK. It's not, the clients know that only too well.
Staffing crisis. It is crucially understaffed in many areas. When they do interview people, they are offered totally different jobs to what they applied for. Be very specific about that if you've seen a job advertised. Also, don't be fooled by any OTE figure- they are all completely unachievable or sometimes actually impossible. Also people drop like flies, the turnover is horrendous and this is made worse by the fact they have a desperate take anyone recruitment policy. Hire good people to start with and they won't leave in 3 months time. Also, making the commercial Recruitment Manager redundant was a very silly idea.
Terrible facilities. Either far too hot or far too cold. MICE on several floors that are just accepted as the norm - expected as they took away all the bins with some ridiculous policy about it being better for you to have to walk miles from your desk to the bin rather have one nearby that actually gets used.
There is a meeting of the commercial staff on a Monday morning that bores everyone to tears. It's their opportunity to waffle on about the big, successful brands and make certain to embarrass the wee people who are having a tough time. Corporate bull that none of the staff give two hoots about.
Can you get more petty than taking away the paper towels from the toilets and kitchens, just to save a paltry amount of money?
Accounts and the CRM are a hindrance, not a help. Because of the huge backlog of unpaid debts, none of which are the sales people's fault, the accounts department are making lives difficult for sales and forcing them and the clients to jump through hoops. It's costing business already and the CRM is becoming more and more complicated.
Lack of training and development. Centaur don't offer anywhere near the same level of educational opportunities as other publishing companies. Although having a seminar with the CEO got people off the floor for a wee while, it does not do anything to really advance a person's career.
All in all, I regret joining. They sold me into a position that is totally different to the reality. The culture has become one of expecting a poor effort from the company, rolling eyes, that's just the way it is - accept it or move on.
