Not what it seems from the outside- AT ALL - Anonymous employee Wonderist Employee Review

Hey- Apologies in advance for the length here, but I feel it’s important to address a few aspects of your review! I’m sure it’s no surprise that running a business takes a lot of stamina and heart. I’d love to tell you that getting a review like this rolls off our back, but alas, it does not. It’s very personal. We are not a faceless, emotionless company and would never want to be, so a review like this feels awful and gets taken seriously. Thanks for taking the time to write some feedback on your year at Wonderist. We agree that the team, community, and culture we’ve built is one worth acknowledging and we’re very proud to have a Culture and Office Manager as a part of our structure to ensure employee happiness and engagement. Additionally, we are very excited about the pillar volunteers who bring events, lunch and learns, trips, and social opportunities to the Wonder Buds every month! As you know, we do a quarterly satisfaction survey that is conducted anonymously and we shared the results with the Department Heads a few weeks ago. While there is always opportunity for improvement, we were very happy with the results with over 91% of your colleagues saying they were happy at Wonderist just last month. Michael and I have never claimed to be perfect- we make mistakes each and every day and try to face those head on and get better- and put people in the right place at the agency to balance the areas where we aren’t as strong. (We will tell you with certainty, that if you want to hold a mirror up to all of your shortcomings daily, there is no better way than owning a business!) And while we certainly don’t expect a glowing review 100% of the time, we’ve learned you can’t please everyone…we have always remained open to feedback from our team, listened to new ideas and changed when called to do so. We care deeply about the work family we have created, the clients we serve and the partners we work with. Are there days where I don’t say things perfectly? Absolutely. Or where Michael is a grouch? You bet. And we’re sorry if you faced that- it’s truly not the experience we’d want for you. With that said, it’s difficult for me and for Michael to recognize ourselves in many of the things you mention. While we are still a small company in many ways, there was very little day to day interaction between us (I spent most of your tenure on maternity leave) and I can’t recall a time where things you identified as problems were brought to my attention personally, Michael or by your manager. If they were, as we do with everyone; we certainly would have entertained them! I don’t think there are many folks- past or present who would say there is a company with a more “open door” policy than Wonderist. Additionally, it’s tough to understand how you can deliver such heavy critique of our culture without acknowledging much of the larger picture, which you neglect to mention. We were not in person much of your tenure at Wonderist, you chose not to attend or participate in our events and opportunities- in person or digitally. You were on a performance plan for not meeting expectations in the role that your peers successfully meet, and the state of the business is discussed quarterly when we shut down business operations for the day to be transparent with our team at “Camp Wonderist”. While reasonable minds can disagree on culture, your comments on benefits are misleading- We offer healthcare, vision, dental, 401k, unlimited vacation with approval, life insurance, disability insurance and many other things. And there is no mistaking that those are alive and well at Wonderist. As we have always done in the almost 10 years we’ve been doing this, we’re going to continue to work to be better as a company and your feedback here will certainly influence this. I’m sorry your experience with us was less than stellar. It’s certainly not what we want for our employees. Wishing you the best in your next chapter.