- Shocking lack of competent leadership
- Constant financial pressure, consultation rounds, forced lay-offs
- Some colleagues are extremely incompetent, having been hired with no relevant consulting background only to be parachuted onto projects as "seniors"
- Hostile bonus structure, designed to ensure you get nothing
- HR department would be better suited to clubbing baby seals for their hides
- L&D department has no clue
- Treatment of employees and customers almost borders on immoral
- Chances of promotion depend on how chummy you are with the higher-ups - hope you like a pint or two, or three, or seventeen
From the moment HSO was partly sold to a private equity firm back in 2018 to now, with a sale to a bigger firm agreed in principle, life at the company as an employee (and as customers) has gotten worse and worse. Misguided decisions and vanity projects by previous management coupled with economic headwinds pushed HSO into a negative spiral that it will not break out of, with its reputation in the market and with Microsoft constantly worsening. The company has prioritized maximizing its profits in preparation for a sale, leaving a hollowed-out carcass that is ill-equipped to actually serve and benefit its customers. Once the deal closes and HSO is under a different cut-throat private equity fund, you can expect its new masters to increase margins further at any cost to earn back their investment. You're better off working literally anywhere else, and prospective customers should be very careful; make sure your contracts are airtight and discuss with Microsoft itself whether better partners are available.
