Pros
You used to get your own FoundersCard membership and card that makes a sweet weed grinder. You'll need it for what lies ahead if you stay at this company.
Cons
TLDR: If you're not a cute, perky, white woman you'll have a rough time. No amount of hard work will make up for if you don't fit into the cliquish nature of the company. Okay. Long version. I'm at a point in my life where if I burn this bridge it's not going to matter. When you're reading this and wondering who I'm talking about just assume it's the same person/people everyone else is warning you about. So... If you look at all the other bad reviews for this company you'll notice a lot of the problem comes down to handful of people in high positions. Those were the same people that worked there when I did and while it's nice to see that it wasn't all in my head, it breaks my heart that others are still going through this. Basically everyday I came home wondering what I was doing with my life. I was in no way making the world a better place, but convinced myself I worked at a "cool edgy startup." It was far from worth it. Do yourself a favor and just search FC on linkedin and look at the demographics of people that they hire. If you're a BIPOC or any other type of person from a marginalized community just run. The gaslighting you deal with will give you whiplash. Those in higher positions "want to hear your thoughts" because it's a "family," but in practice voicing contrary opinions is not going to be well received. I'm a direct communicator, it's not for everyone and I understand that. But, it's a little disconcerting that they ask for input when they want an echo chamber. They do not honor what the office hours are. If you're packing up for the day and still in the office at 5:15 and that phone rings expect a certain someone to raise an eyebrow at you and ask why you're not taking it. (Hint: It's the same person everyone else is warning you about.) It doesn't matter what YOUR work /life balance or boundaries are. It's theirs. And god help you if you clash on that. I'll admit that I was SUPER green when I worked at FC and that was a contributor to my success or lack thereof there. However, it was a demoralizing environment that was so appearance based it takes someone equally obsessed with status to survive. We were a small team and were encouraged to share and be vulnerable with the C-suite team. That backfired so quickly. Straight from my mouth, warped into a complaint or character flaw by the recipient, and straight to the CEO's ear. Once they brought me in for a meeting to talk about my work suffering and I started crying. I had a lot going on in my personal life and I will readily admit that my work wasn't up to par. I'll never forget what they said to me, "I'm glad to see you crying because it lets me know you actually care about this job." No question about if what they were seeing in my work was the result of something else. I'm sorry... That is not a compassionate response that will help my productivity or solve the problem at hand. Where did you learn your bedside manner from? A Stephen King novel. And I'm sure there are some people who think FC was in the right. Maybe, but don't spout faux support you got from a skimmed article in FastCompany about being a "family" and then do that. Being miserable is not a sleek or sexy way of life and if FC has ever done any introspection then they would see how it's not their rigorous standards that upset people. It is the fact they treat people like chattel and refuse to acknowledge that they can be "allies" for equality but still not be grounded in the reality of their workers. The c-suite is pretty cavalier with sharing their political opinions. Get ready to hear a lot of concerning comments about poor people, BIPOCs, their opinions on hard work, etc. It stings when you're working class and your boss is going on and on about working class people. If you've read all of us and think I'm completely at fault here then congratulations. You're gonna do great at your new job!
