Steer Clear! - Anonymous employee WorldFirst Employee Review

I appreciate your feedback, so thank you for taking the time to post this. As a business our ethos is “People First” and it’s one we take very seriously, so I’m sorry that your personal experience with us hasn’t left that impression on you. There have been major organizational changes within our US business recently, which have no doubt been very challenging for our staff, but I feel confident that these changes will indeed address some of your concerns. For instance, over the next 2 months, we will have all departments permanently located in our Austin office, which doubles the management team on the ground. We hope that with the addition of new staff, departments, and managers in Austin, the business will be stabilized and therefore grow in the most positive way. To address your concerns over the “party” atmosphere; primarily we feel strongly about creating a culture that is professional, collaborative and supportive for all staff. We have a predominantly junior staff, and most of our employees are new to the Austin area; therefore, there is not much separation between work friends and social friends for them at the moment. While the majority of social events are not WFUSA-sponsored events, and there are definitely no punitive repercussions for those who don’t attend, they do help to build networks for staff who are new to a city and who are getting to know both it and each other. Lastly, our global and local HR team take professional development very seriously; they have spent time and resources on employee engagement surveys, with workshops and action plans in response to the results. They have also launched Broadening Horizons, which brings in both internal and external speakers on various topics/disciplines to help further employees’ business acumen. This program, alongside our PDP tool, also supports continued development. Hopefully these tools will support your own development, but please do contact me or one of the HR team directly if you want to discuss this further.