Dysfunctional office, tone deaf corporate leadership
Pros
- Opportunity to work with, and learn from, brilliant PR pros throughout the Edelman network - team members from Austin, New York and Seattle are particularly strong. - Profit sharing was a nice benefit -Good health/dental/vision insurance - Company matched 401K contributions
Cons
- Work-life balance is non-existent. The company pays a lot of lip service to the concept, and makes overtures to demonstrate a commitment to women in the workplace, but the day-to-day reality involved a lot of 60+ hour work weeks and constantly staying glued to my phone during off-hours. - Salaries - particularly at the junior level (AAE/AE/SAE) - were ridiculously low (much lower than average salaries paid by other DFW agencies). I felt terrible about the amount of work we piled on staff while providing marginal compensation. - Promotions are given twice a year, and personal performance plays a small role in determining advancement (it seemed that more emphasis was given to regional revenue/ P&L). -Digital expertise in Dallas is almost non-existent; heavy reliance on senior staff in Austin and other offices. -Corporate and local leadership don't seem to understand the Dallas market.. The agency has a lengthy track record of churning through general managers every 3-5 years, which resulted in two major bouts of staff turnover during my tenure.
