Strange dynamic where everything has to be approved by one of the co-founders, leading to bottlenecks and delays. These delays are ultimately blamed on employees and the micromanagement is demotivating. Workflow and processes are chaotic and unclear.
The financial management is questionable. The company over-hired and then let people go with 1 weeks notice. This was handled terribly, with absolutely no consideration given to people's mental and financial wellbeing. Hiring managers are not upfront and honest about the company's circumstances when hiring - take any promises and claims with a big pinch of salt!
Employees are openly criticised by co-founders and some more senior members. I witnessed calls where people were berated in a really unprofessional manner. Some (mainly senior) members of the team take pride in communicating quite rudely, and it's common for people to be really late for meetings. Needless to say psychological safety is non- existent.
This high-stress approach is passed off as being rooted in passion for the mission, and to an extent I'm sure it is, but a mission-driven company is not worth it's salt if people are not treated with basic respect. I really hope that junior employees or those for who this might be their first corporate role realise this is not normal.