Procter & Gamble reviews

Ah - so many cons these days. This company feels directionless and has an unhappy, self-serving culture that is entirely focused on 'whats in it for me.' There are many things cited in many of these reviews that are certainly true - big, slow, bureaucratic, etc etc. I don't quibble with those, they are all true. Fundamentally I think this company is in deep trouble due to a sense of arrogance and entitlement that has seeped into every aspect of the culture. -Leaders talk about a "right to win" as though it has been ordained that eventually P&G and its brands will assume their rightful place at the head of the pack and all will be rewarded. -The company has curtailed hiring and has been handing out severance packages in order to try to make earnings figures, no one seems to realize that this results in an aging, like-minded workforce made up of those without the risk tolerance or skills to compete externally. Rather than getting rid of those who don't contribute this is the expensive, cowardly way out. -The value proposition for newer employees is MUCH worse than for those who joined long ago (in terms of advancement, compensation, profit sharing) so the few talented youngsters that do get hired are turning over like crazy. -After buying brands, seeing them stagnate, throwing one CEO under the bus, and bringing AG back for an encore, the Board has embraced "focus" as a strategy, selling off what AG put together in the first place. There is no change in culture, process etc underway - just a smaller version of the mess of recent years. I have heard no compelling rationale suggesting this is a winning plan. -When things go right its due to P&G brilliance, when they don't it is always externally driven - devaluation in Venezuela, foreign exchange headwinds etc etc. No accountability at any senior level. -Some people at the VP/Band 6 level have polish but no ideas and are very poor leaders. Lucky for them they can rotate jobs again and again, never really owning anything long enough to see a plan all the way through and have to live with the results.

Politics take precedent over common sense. Cincinnati offices are politics on steroids. Too many approvals to obtain and too many people saying "no" - really slows the business and perpetuates problems which need to be solved. Ideas take forever to come to light. Ideas I had which took 2 years to approve, and fund, took less than 3 months to to reach the same stage at the company I joined upon leaving. Great ideas are stifled as senior management. Directors and VP's are too cautious and reluctant to support and surface ideas. I was told more than once that my ideas were great but leaders did not want to share them for fear they would be responsible to execute. There was a time at P&G when those who could deliver great results and develop organization to sustain them were valued and promoted. However, since about 2000, the desired characteristics for promotion shifted more to those with great vision and the ability to sell it. Commitments and delivery began to take a back seat and the company results have suffered ever since. Several outstanding leaders left the company as they were not politically connected and could not rise to the top. These same leaders are now highly successful elsewhere including in roles leading P&G's competition. It was a shame P&G lost these great leaders - again these were the ones who could actually deliver.