Racketeering Sales Company with some Decent People
Pros
-Nearly all the people I interacted with at this company were kind, professional, and passionate about the location. There some really wonderful people above me and below me. -The company really tries to keep employee morale up, but with typical corporate "incentives" (pizza parties, cheap gift cards). Though I have qualms with some of their practices, I never felt like the company didn't value its employees. Even the CEO himself, Steve Craig, expressed interest and care for our team. -Slightly better pay for part-times than retailers and restaurants in the area. It's not great, but it's not terrible, either. They also advertise it pretty publicly o the job listing. -Gave me a generous bonus to keep me on for a month after I told them I was going to quit. I asked for it.
Cons
At its core, it's a business that shouldn't exist. -It preys on location guests' discomfort, pressuring them into photos they don't want and not giving them a choice to say no to the photo (this is an official company policy: "We don't ask people if they want photos, we tell them that we're taking their photo. Don't give them the chance to say no.") -Straight-up deceptive sales tactics. Our goal was to make the photo-taking seem like it was a required part of attending the museum (it's not). We were told to tell people they could get a free "e-postcard" (glorified digital photos in cheesy video form. Anyone with the knowledge of how to take a screenshot could get their digital photos for free) to imply that their photos were free. Additionally, we were told to dramatically throw away photos in front of disinterested guests as a play to exploit their sentimentality. -The photo spot that the company selected was at the exit of the museum's Holocaust exhibit. We were told to start our pitch ("I'm going to have you step right here for a quick photo!") as soon as museum guests exited it. According to the company, it was the best "choke point." Absolutely insensitive and offensive. -Managers were instructed to spy on employees through "hidden vantage points." I get it, we have to make sure everyone's actually working and not on their phones, but hiding on the second floor and peering over the balcony is just creepy.