Pros
You will trauma bond with the other employees, because everyone is aware of the shady and violating practices, but you will have to keep smiles plastered on your faces and “get along” with each other.
Cons
Unpaid overtime (12-14hr work days) is normal. The CEO/management reach out after hours, even if it’s 3am. When the team is overloaded with tasks that can’t realistically be finished, they’re told to work even more unpaid OT to keep up. You’re expected to stay on call at all times even during appointments because the CEO won’t tolerate you having a life outside work. Even if your pet dies, your child is sick, you lose your parents. The CEO randomly calls all employees just to berate them, saying things like we should go work at McDonald’s instead of consulting. He uses abusive language and treats employees like slaves. Your job will revolve more around managing the CEO’s emotions than consulting. Management is so focused on avoiding his tantrums that they neglect their actual duties. The CEO continually pushes boundaries trying to see how much he can kill your soul. Management is overwhelmed putting out ongoing crises while introducing constant changes that only make things worse. When those changes fail, another round of mass layoffs follows. It feels like playing Russian roulette with employees’ jobs. You never know who will be next. The CEO secures clients at unrealistically low hours, setting the team up to fail. When the work exceeds those limits as it inevitably would the team is blamed for not delivering on his promises. He overpromises and doesn’t deliver. Clients encounter questionable billing and when they push back the entire team is pulled in to justify the charges instead of management. The CEO claims he’s the “best person” to handle everything. He insists that the team does everything wrong because it’s not how he would do it. CEO, if you don’t trust your team, you might as well lay everyone off, since you think it’s better off as a one-man show. The CEO/management say to “just use AI” and expect instant results. They ignore the work required to guide AI effectively. They share screens to show how “easy” it is claiming tasks take only minutes. In reality, what’s shown is often wrong, but the team stays silent to avoid another CEO tantrum. When you put in a request for any type of leave, you will be made to feel guilty for thinking of taking a break. If you are sick, you are told to just push through because who cares about you? Surely not the CEO/management. Every pay cycle is a gamble. If clients refuse to pay after realizing they’ve been misled, the company claims it has no money to pay you. Even after resigning, you risk not receiving your final pay because they no longer see a use for you. The CEO behaves as if he’s leading a Fortune 500 company, while struggling to meet even the basic KPIs a company like NetDynamic would require. CEO, if this is a “startup,” act like it. The employees who remain do so because they feel trapped with no exit options, and the CEO exploits it. Management assigns so-called “passion projects” on random Fridays, expecting them completed over the weekend and presented Monday morning. Each week starts with a mandatory 8:45am company-wide call, even if it’s outside your work hours as they are gradually conditioning you to get used to starting earlier, like 8am or 7am. If you’re a minute late, you’re told to leave. I advise you spend that time applying elsewhere, before you lose your sanity to this company. Constant aggressive probing into employees politics and religious beliefs along with discrimination based on gender. Employees face comments from management about their bodies, looks and clothing. When they speak up they’re told to “just get along with everyone” aka stay quiet and take it.
