A How-To for the wrong way to run a company.
Pros
There are very few Pros working at JAS. The health benefits are still decent, especially in this time of rapidly deteriorating coverage and stratospheric prices. There is massive opportunity to try new things and expand your role, but do not expect compensation or recognition for excellence, unless it makes an executive look good. Even then, your role as an innovator is co-opted by the execs. The only positive part is that in such a Wild West environment, you can learn skills that will be valuable in your next job...which you are probably searching for already. The other positive is the low-level people and the rare manager who are competent, quality people, stuck in the job because of personal circumstances or economic reasons. These people are the only real reason to go to work, as their support of each other is what keeps you going in your role. It is inspiring to see what can be done by good, intelligent, ethical workers, in the face of great adversity. In a better environment, these people would be unstoppable.
Cons
Cons? -Cronyism: Have an elitist attitude, the right image, the right friends and the world is your oyster, regardless of your education, ability, competence or ethics. -Strict adherence to policies: Only if you are NOT part of the in-crowd. If you are a current golden boy, the rules don't apply to you. -The Ivory Tower: In a company so small, it is shocking how disconnected the C levels are from the employees. They surround themselves with personal comforts and the trappings of luxury, while the employees toil away in cubes, in a tomb-like environment, as making noise or being noticed is more likely to bring wrath than recognition. From parking privileges to personal bathrooms, the Execs make it known that they are better than everyone in their employee. All that when staff are under-paid and the only way to get a raise is to threaten to leave. If you DO manage to get a raise via this method, you have marked yourself for elimination at the first, barely legal, opportunity; no matter how useful and productive you are. The most toxic environment I have ever had the displeasure of working in.
