50 Shades of SoftRock: Beware of Future Endeavors
Pros
Free drinks, popcorn, corn hole, etc. (though most of these things were only for recruiting purposes). I created long lasting friendships that transcend the bureaucracy of a corrupt business model.
Cons
SoftRock closed in March of 2016 for good reason, so the intention of this review is to warn job seekers interested in applying for positions in any company managed by or affiliated with Alec Difrawi (Alec Defrawy, Michael Defrawy, Ayman El-Difrawi, Ayman A. El-Difrawi, Ayman Ahmed El-Difrawi or whatever he feels like being called on a day-to-day basis) in the future. Stay away from this man. He shouldn't be allowed to start new companies, but he'll always find a way like the greedy, seedy scam artist he is. It feels so good to say all of these things now. When you float around the inner circle (by working hard, not sexing it up), you quickly learn how bad the gossip is. Cons of working for this man, the managers he chose, and the horrible empire he built: discrimination, sexual harassment, unfair wages, immoral extracurricular and company activities (girls in bathing suits for a prank on an almost all-male tech department, girls in athletic wear for a silly commercial made for an education partner to like us, drinking on the job, etc.), chauvinistic management practices, false promises (partner-affiliated lawsuit payouts to employees who hadn't received quarterly bonuses or salary raises in a year or more), personal vendettas, and impromptu meetings either early in the morning (an hour or two before your shift starts) or very late in the day (when you should be driving home or you should have already been home for an hour) because Alec "doesn't sleep" and so he thought of another brilliant plan to look like a legit company while still robbing consumers. Oh I forgot to mention many of these positive Glassdoor reviews are fake, the result of Alec asking his managers and prized personnel to flood these sorts of job boards with positive messages about working for him. In reality, working for him made me resent the marketing business. We duped people, we made false promises to candidates, we fired people for terrible reasons, and we hired the wrong people because they looked great in skirts and low-cut blouses. If you want to respect yourself, gain actual experience in your industry, and capitalize on that experience in the long run, don't work for any company owned or operated by Alec Difrawi. Run in the other direction. I learned my lesson the hard way, even though I was applying and interviewing for various positions within six months of working there. I somehow lasted (and couldn't leave, because SoftRock was and is a sore spot on my resume) almost three years. Don't waste your precious professional time on him or the brand he's shoving down your throat. He doesn't know what he's talking about and he will never, contrary to his wanton belief, start a truly innovative company like Google. He's not capable, and he's not as smart as he thinks he is.
