Toxic culture overshadowed the benefits of remote work
Pros
The work is fully remote
Cons
In my experience, the work itself was not the problem. the environment around it was. I found the culture to be extremely toxic, stressful, and mentally draining. Instead of feeling motivated to perform well, there was often a feeling of operating under constant pressure and uncertainty. There was a persistent sense that job security was fragile. I saw situations where employees were suddenly gone, which created an atmosphere where people felt they had to constantly watch every step they took. Rather than focusing on doing meaningful work or producing strong results, it often felt like people were trying to avoid becoming the next target of criticism. The company felt heavily driven by metrics to an excessive degree. Nearly every activity seemed measured, monitored, and scrutinized. It often felt less like being treated as a professional and more like being treated as a number in a system. Bringing in results alone did not always feel sufficient if other internal metrics were not met. Leadership turnover also appeared frequent, creating a sense of instability. At the management level, I personally experienced leadership styles that felt more focused on authority and control than mentorship or support. There were situations where confidence seemed to outweigh competence, and where receiving support or constructive guidance felt secondary to pressure and oversight. Accountability also felt inconsistent. Employees could be left feeling responsible for problems outside of their control, while communication and expectations sometimes felt unclear or changed over time. I was also left with concerns around fairness and consistency in how employees appeared to be treated and supported. Overall, the environment felt political, high-pressure, and difficult to trust. I left with the feeling that people were expected to endure the culture rather than grow within it. There will never be pay raises. Health insurance was cut in half and almost all other benefits were taken away. There will never be a chance to be promoted as the company is not growing.
