Decent Work, Iffy Culture - Anonymous employee BatesMeron Employee Review

2.0
Sep 6, 2023
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

If you're willing to put in the work, you will absolutely go far. The small agency atmosphere means you will be asked to wear many hats—and you'll get tons of experience if you're up to the task. Volunteering to try something new will always be met with encouragement. They are willing to take a chance on someone they can mentor, and it will work in your favor if you're looking for new professional experiences.

Cons

Management seems to be behind the times when it comes to what is acceptable office behavior, but inappropriate questions and uncouth jokes are honestly just the start. There seem to always be 3 versions of any story: what you were told, what someone else heard, and the truth. You are often promised what they think you want to hear, but when the follow-up comes, it's something else entirely. Singling out employees for ridicule or aggressive critique happens often, both in group settings and behind closed doors. Disagreements with direction are often declared to be non-participation or bullying. The company culture could be remedied quite easily if top management wasn't the root cause.

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BatesMeron Response
2y
So sorry it wasn't a good fit for you. We wish you all the best.

Explore other reviews about BatesMeron

5.0
Mar 5, 2020
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

We’re a small, close knit team that wholly trusts each other to do what they do best. Everyone is eager and willing to help when other team members need support. As designers we’re encouraged to fight for our ideas, solve business problems strategically and do the best possible work for our clients.

Cons

A small team inherently brings a lot of responsibility. If you’re uncomfortable taking ownership over many projects at once it can be very stressful.

3
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BatesMeron Response
6y
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback! As I’m sure you know, our Manifesto is very important to us at BMSD, and “trust people to do what they do best” is one of the core components of it. We’re so happy to hear that you feel we are living that value to the fullest. Additionally, thank you for your honesty about our workload and management. You’re right, small teams mean big responsibility—but they also mean lots of collaboration and creative freedom. It is thanks to employees like you who provide honest feedback that we are able to grow and improve as a team.
5.0
Sep 10, 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

I came into the BatesMeron team as a senior copywriter and immediately found myself empowered to make creative decisions for clients and for the agency itself. This only grew over my four years with the company. Across clients and projects, I always felt like my voice was heard—as is every voice within the creative team, which positioned us to create some truly rewarding and successful work across the diverse portfolio of clients the agency maintains. As a branding agency, BatesMeron offered me numerous opportunities to grow, not only as a writer, but more holistically, learning the ins and outs of everything from branding to design to web development and from pitching clients to putting out fires. The size of BatesMeron means employees wear many hats. I was even entrusted to help steer the agency as an associate creative director there for the last year of my time there. For someone wanting to get hands-on with both agency life and how the business of an agency works, I can't recommend a career with BatesMeron highly enough. I wouldn't have been able to make the next step in my career without the guidance the agency's management gave me in finding my voice as a writer and as a leader.

Cons

For creatives, there's a big difference between in-house work and agency work. Even as a small agency, workflow at BatesMeron moves fast. This takes some getting used to and is not for everybody. There are also big personalities at BatesMeron. I was one of them so I was able to hold my own, but it helps to be assertive to succeed .

3
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BatesMeron Response
6y
Thank you for your thoughtful feedback! We love to hear that BatesMeron has helped you grow in your career and learn the lay of the branding and marketing land. Also, thank you for truly capturing the day to day of our office. Playing a hand in multiple projects for multiple clients at once is certainly a necessary skill here at BMSD, and we’re happy to hear you’ve found it manageable with the help of our entire team.
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