Cultural nighmare - Anonymous employee Petco Employee Review

1.0
Jul 31, 2017
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

+ You can bring your pets to work

Cons

- Leadership (Micro Managers all the way up to the CEO, Finger Pointing, Lack of Accountability) - Lack of clear strategy vision (changes with the wind) - Culture (Finger pointing, leadership thinks there's a 'talent issue' and takes no accountability for culture, nobody is held accountable, execs take bonuses in years when bonuses aren't handed out to anybody, lack of career coaching, advancement, leadership wants minions/doers, not thinkers or people that will challenge their thinking) - 5-10 people have been quitting a week for the past 2+ months, including high potential talent - They don't understand what it means to be an Omni channel retailer and the importance of .com (decisions are made in silos to drive margin vs what's right for the customer) - Slow pace and the amount of time and rigor it takes to move something simple forward because of the bureaucracy is mind blowing (CEO likes to be involved in minute decisions vs spending time and efforts setting clear strategy and engaging and inspiring the team) - Talent is an after thought and they restructure 1-2 times a year to get rid of the "bad talent" so continual layoffs happen because they can't get it right

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5.0
Feb 5, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
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Pros

Good team and leadership at this location

Cons

Hours range from morning by to night

1.0
Jul 14, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Wonderful people under the Sr. Director level - Dogs in the office - Brand name carries weight on your resume

Cons

- Sr. Directors and above are largely nepotism hires rather than merit-based promotions - Leadership team is toxic and disrespectful, and that tone trickles down to other senior leaders - Gender favoritism shows up repeatedly, with women being asked to pick up the work of men without additional pay. Or men being promoted over women due to favoritism and not merit. - Nearly every employee I worked with was disengaged and functioning out of fear of layoffs rather than job satisfaction (layoffs happen multiple times a year) - The company's declining position also makes it harder to land your next role, since a recent Petco title now reads as coming from a struggling brand

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