Working at EF is a challenging experience, by the end you will know how to filter out possible red flags in a next possible employer and what to pay attention to. But overall EF sets the bar so high that any next opportunity will be less worse then EF, Budapest (!) office.
Below my experience and my views how it is like being an employee of EF:
1. Micromanagement
Either you get no attention at all and you work as a ghost at the company, or you are micromanaged in all aspects of your work. If you cannot stay longer outside working hours (which does not considered outside working hours as local manager makes you feel that work should mean the life to you), you are questioned what else are you doing but not working for the company. Pushing tasks aggressively, asking for updates all the time, making everything urgent, during winter holiday, over the weekend etc.
2. No HR at the company
This is quite a global issue at EF, but there is no HR at the company who is dealing with Employee Relations stuff. This is surprising and sad also for those coming to an HR position which at the end is not HR, but payroll. If you have a specific problem, you are directed to your manager, but if you have problem with your manager then it is a checkmate situation. Only solution is for you to resign, because no one will help you. It feels like 'HR' is also not supported in case they raise concerns.
3. Stifling atmosphere and stress
At the beginning they are trying to show you how dynamic and fast paced and cool the company is, but over time (or right away you step in) you will realize that only the management can see it that way. Management puts a lot of pressure on you and does not respect you if you try to keep yourself to the working hours set in contract. Of course all for these overwork, you do not recieve any compensation back. Upper management creates an atmospehere that you can be valued only if you work all the time, and does not respect you or take you into account if you are setting boundaries. High salary cannot compensate the health issues what stress causes on a daily basis.
4. Lack of documentation, processes
The company represents a learn on the job mindset which is fine until you are trying to follow a process (which was spread by word of mouth), and next day your supervisor tells you to do the other way because some upper management folk asks them to do something which makes you break the process. There is no documentation, no processes on paper, which makes your daily work very difficult. In case there is, management shows no consistency on that.
5. Company does not respect individual
Overall the company uses you as a resource and try to maximize your capability and workload to be able to get the most of the work out of yourself in a short time, and shows no care about if you leave after. This is especially true in case of Hungarian (mostly younger adult) coworkers who are seen (again, by management) as complaining all the time, not being grateful, being dissatisfied all the time, however they are the ones who can see what terrible offer EF has, not the ones here working with visa. Hungarian colleagues are in the shadow.
Apart from that, your voice is not heard at the company, your opinion does not matter, your concerns are not taken into consideration, you only get the minimum information needed to be able to get your job done. They are extremely egoist with a high-hat, but I do not know for what.
Aggressive leadership methodology and superiority what you receive.