Thesis reviews about "layoff"

After layoffs, there was a lot of mistrust of the company and management in making the best long-term decisions.

- C suite is abysmal. They lack the breadth and depth of experience you would expect from a professional at that level. The CEO is nonexistent and seems to only get involved in anything when it concerns Thesis' outwardly image. The COO knows nothing outside of the account mgmt discipline, thus makes poor business decisions routinely. The CCO is hard at work resurrecting a "boys club" of high up design bros, who are coincidentally all white men. - SLT and ELT lack conviction, honesty and integrity to stand up for employees and what's right. They're frequently providing lip service to their direct reports, while parroting what CLT wants them to. At best, they're complacent in the toxicity, often contributing to it, then jump ship and leave the makers/colleagues to deal with their poor decisions and disfunction. - Overall, there's a confusing and lack luster mission statement and vision for the company. They've gone through three (or more) iterations of their "brand" while they hemorrhage talent and money. - The building was a completely unnecessary investment that is rumored to cost upwards of a couple hundred thousand dollars per month to rent & operate. This results in misbalanced budgeting and unreasonable and unclear profitability expectations across all projects. - In two years, the agency has gone through four rounds of layoffs, so job stability is a myth. - Agency leadership decided to purchase a failing competitor in an effort to absorb new clients, rather than bolster a robust internal new business operation.

As a people manager, I oversaw three direct reports, all Junior-level Producers who struggled to advance in their roles and be seen by leadership. I did everything I could to support their efforts, and was constantly gaslit and talked down to. Our Account Director had the audacity to give each of my direct reports the book, "The Subtle Art of Not Giving a [blank]" when they expressed interest in learning and growing. Since leaving Thesis, I've learned that the embedded account had several benefits stripped without the ability to renegotiate wages. For example, Thesis will no longer support their Professional Development budget and PTO hours were heavily reduced. When I was first hired in 2021, diversity was a huge priority and topic of conversation. Slowly over the years, many POC were quietly let go employee resource groups were villainized.

I was with Thesis for 2.5 years so I had been there for long enough to get a good read of the company. During that time, I lost track of the number of lay-offs; it must have been around 3 or 4. All staff/town hall meetings were grueling. The CEO would openly yell and chastise the employees as if we were children. So many times it was 'If you don't want to be here, then leave,' which I guess is true, which is why so many people ended up leaving without having jobs lined up, but there were others who couldn't be so fortunate. The C-Level was a clicky group that was very out of touch with the actual happenings of the company. Some of them seem qualified, but the highest-ranking ones had been with the company from day 1, so they just moved to executive positions without having executive experience. It was very evident in how they acted and the few decisions they shared with us, I hope that beautiful building can get to 50% capacity someday. The real victims were the remote employees. They were remote for years, and then one day (After many layoffs and millions invested into a building in NW Portland), they were told to relocate or resign (I imagine this was done this way so they would not have to pay unemployment). They were given a week or 2 to come to a decision and were given a small stipend for the move. A person I didn't know personally agreed to relocate, and they were based on the East Coast. A week before they were set to relocate, they were laid off. Now they have a one-way ticket to Portland and no employer. Your performance does not impact how you are treated. I saw 2 different employees with fine reviews and had really good client relations. Then one day they were gone, just like that. I believe there was some friction with them and their Thesis supervisor so they got the boot. The work and performance were not the issue; it was a relationship/personality issue.

Executive leadership thrives on nepotism and fear/panic-based business practices and often doesn't practice what they preach. The company used to feel as though it was “people-first” as they claim to be, but it is clear that the tides have changed and C-Suite have lost their way in what is important and necessary to run a successful business. The company has gone through multiple restructurings and layoffs over the last two years, including driving some questionable business decisions. Most of the C-Suite have been there since company inception, starting out in entry level roles, which further shows they lack experience working in an executive-caliber positions.

Leadership doesn’t listen to any outside opinions and the CEO fires and demotes at random. Seems like CEO is sensitive to criticism and won’t tolerate it inside the executive team. Layoffs are constant and not always related to financial state of the company. The most recent one was “directional” but they really just used the opportunity to get rid of essential teammates that had been openly questioning of the direction of things. Arguably retaliatory layoff practices. Opportunities are made superficially, usually because someone dresses cool or has made friends around the office. Many hardworking and talented employees are stuck working on the same work forever because management doesn’t take interest in them.

Thesis leadership treats employees like a number on a spreadsheet. They only care about profits and not you as a human. I witnessed so many layoffs for no good reason.

Thesis is a toxic environment that prioritizes ego over employee well-being, with the pernicious behavior trickling down from the top. The so-called "feedback culture" is a farce—it's one-sided and top-down, with managers more focused on protecting themselves than supporting their direct reports. Those few managers who actually try to stand up for their teams are either fired, laid off (in one of the four layoffs in the past year) or made so miserable they eventually quit. Meanwhile, HR is no help, using employee complaints to build cases against them rather than addressing the issues at hand. The abrupt shift from 2 days to 3 days a week in-office attendance with only two weeks' notice, right before summer, left parents scrambling with no sympathy from leadership. The CEO doesn't even adhere to the same Return-to-Office policies imposed on employees and the building they are so eager to fill is ill-equipped with enough private spaces for employees to actually get work done. The agency is also pitching more work than they have manpower to handle, leading to overworked and burnt-out staff. Opportunities for growth are non-existent unless you’re part of the ELT’s inner circle, where sucking up is the key to advancement. The DEI "policies" are entirely performative — there's little real commitment to equitable hiring practices or providing growth opportunities for employees from underrepresented groups. This feedback isn’t just a one-off — it’s a common thread among nearly everyone who has left the company. Yet, leadership continues to deflect any responsibility, blaming the mass exodus of clients on “lack of productivity” from employees, rather than confronting their own failures. The solution they propose? Strict in-office hours and micromanagement, as if this will suddenly solve the deeper issues of poor leadership and an inability to bring in new business. When employees have raised concerns or asked about Glassdoor reviews, leadership dismisses them as the complaints of "disgruntled employees," yet the recurring themes—lack of support, micromanagement, and a toxic culture—have been consistent for years. When feedback is this persistent, it’s evident that the problem isn’t just disgruntled former employees, but the leadership itself. Do yourself a favor: avoid working here unless you’re prepared to invest heavily in therapy to cope with the overwhelming stress and dysfunction.