In my multi-year tenure with the business, I have seen the internal and external experience for both employees and customers deteriorate in the following areas:
Poor Pay: Compensation is not competitive with industry standards or New York City, leading to dissatisfaction among employees. Additionally, the commission structure is flawed and has been changed several times - any form of commission is essentially unattainable.
Poor Leadership: The leadership team was gutted as 2 business combined into QA. The current leadership team doesn't have direct industry experience and is disconnected from the concerns of employees and clients, often dismissing critical feedback. Some leaders are also highly inefficient at their jobs, forcing the team members below them to pick up and manage logistical issues their leader should own. Constructive ideas or red flags by trusted team members and managers are typically ignored or not actioned.
Poor Client Experience: Clients frequently pull back on their investments or choose not to renew contracts due to dissatisfaction with the product itself. The CSMs and New Business teams are doing their best to share and provide given the failures of the product. Servicing clients properly is also a challenge due to lack of internal support.
Lack of a Clear Product and Product Value: There is a significant lack of clarity in the products offered and their value proposition, making it difficult to sell and deliver effectively. I'm truly confused on the vision of the business, the products that will support it, and the reality or even feasibility of delivering those products. There is also misalignment in this vision and the reality of what are clients are looking for from us a business.
Undeliverable Products: New products are being created and sold without a viable means of delivery, leading to broken promises and frustration for both clients and employees. I personally was encouraged to sell a new product with little information/resources, successfully did so with a trusted client, and then spent the following 8 weeks developing a way to make it happen for my client... there was no process or expertise in place for delivery, and I had to develop this product cross-functionally on my own without any structure from leadership.
No Career Progression: There are minimal opportunities for career growth and advancement within the company. I hadn't had a professional development review or even informal career conversation in over a year by the time I left the business. Any promotion that occurs is hard fought for by individuals and managers and is a lengthy process.
Ignored Escalations: Despite escalating issues and concerns from an experienced and tenured team, the leadership team consistently dismisses them, resulting in a lack of resolution and support impacting clients.
Unstable Work Environment: Frequent layoffs and voluntary exits have created an unstable and insecure work environment. There is no real trust between leadership and non-management employees.
Lack of Support: There is insufficient support for employees, both in terms of internal tools/resources and management backing.
I truly would have liked to stay with this business longer - I had no intentions of leaving and greatly enjoyed the working relationships with my direct colleagues. However, the last 6-8 months made it truly untenable to stay, not only for myself but many other talented team members. In my case, I was stressed out, overworked, underpaid, and ignored whenever I tried to escalate concerns or client issues. With a lack of faith in the leadership team and lack of confidence in the trajectory of the business, staying with QA was not an option for my career progression or work life balance.
