As an Executive Assistant at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, I had one of the most stressful, toxic work experiences of my life. My direct manager was impossible to work with. They were unclear about expectations, constantly changing requirements, and always making last-minute demands that were nowhere in the original request. It seemed like a game of “gotcha” with expectations—never clear upfront, but quick to reprimand when something didn’t meet their impossible standards.
I requested PTO two months in advance for an already scheduled and booked vacation and was denied due to a “retirement party” that I already had down my part for. There was no work-life balance. No flexibility or no consideration for personal time or well-being. It got to the point where the stress became so unbearable that I actually broke out in shingles—yes, shingles—because of the pressure from my manager. This level of stress should not be normal for any job, let alone one like this.
There’s no support from the institute HR, and the environment feels hostile. I’ve worked with many senior executives, who were mostly fine and easy to communicate with, but none of that matters when your direct manager is making your life a living nightmare.
The institute’s communication practices are beyond unprofessional and raise serious security concerns. They routinely use personal email addresses for faculty and staff when sending out group emails. It’s honestly not surprising they got cyber-attacked.
