Do it if you have to. Avoid if you can - Account Manager SmartBug Media Employee Review

1. Culture 2. The SmartBug team from the top down--really lives by the company's values, and doesn't just preach them, but demonstrates daily that they practice them. I respect the relationship I have with my manager, who is not only an inspirational colleague but also a friend. 3. Caliber of clients--you get to work with amazing companies and teams from all over the world! 4. Flexibility--I get to build into my schedule things that are important to me, like driving my kids to school every day. 5. Opportunity--you are rewarded for good work, have the ability to earn commissions on accounts you sell deeper into, and there is a huge push for ongoing education and career development. 6. Innovators--consistently on the cutting edge of new technologies and strategies.

Client work can be stressful--that's not SmartBug, that's ALL agencies. If an agency tells you it isn't, they are lying. If you are a person who doesn't handle pressure or difficult conversations easily, then this might not be the industry for you. I've worked at 3 agencies, and SmartBug is unmatched in comparison to the tools and resources they provide to do your best job every day, even when a client throws you a curveball.

If there’s one good thing about working at SmartBug, it’s the people you’re in the trenches with. Everyone is paddling up the same creek together, and that shared struggle creates a bond. Your coworkers get it. No one has to explain the stress or the chaos because everyone is dealing with it at the same time. That leads to real compassion and support at the peer level. But that’s where the positives stop. That support doesn’t really extend upward. Middle management might try in small ways, but it feels limited and inconsistent. And executive leadership is disconnected from what employees are actually experiencing. So yes, the coworkers are empathetic, supportive, and doing their best in a tough environment. Just don’t expect that same energy from leadership.

My time at SmartBug was a huge letdown. Whatever made the company great is long gone. Everything changed after several rounds of layoffs. Morale tanked and never recovered. People who had been there 6+ years started leaving, and not quietly either. When your most loyal employees are walking out, that should tell you everything. The biggest issue is leadership. Executive management is toxic and out of touch. They prioritize numbers over supporting the people doing the work. The founder built something really solid at one point, but that got lost somewhere along the way. Most likely corporate greed, but what do I know? I only lived it...along with hundreds of other past and current employees. Day to day, you don't get support from managers. You’re expected to hit KPIs that either don’t make sense or can’t realistically be measured, and then you’re still held accountable for them. It puts you in a position where you’re set up to fail. A lot of the people who have been there for ~5 years are actively trying to leave. They’re not staying because it’s great; they’re staying because they haven’t landed something else yet. That says a lot. I wouldn't recommend applying unless you’re okay with a frustrating environment that's more focused on metrics than people.