Hostile environment, Avoid - Anonymous employee Mindshare PR Employee Review

Unfortunately, the prior negative reviews are true, and, as I'm sure anyone can guess, the owner pressured current employees to write positive reviews. (It actually sounds like Heather may have written or edited it.) Previous employees are still in touch with current employees, and one reason these reviews are going up is to help make things better for the ones who are still here or who leave. That one positive review only shows that things will never change. (Do you really want to work at an agency where a peer or manager wants the company to "screen better, fire faster"?) The main thing to know is that working here will not help you build your PR career. 1) You can't learn/progress as well as at other agencies because processes are outdated 2)If you do great work, you can't get recognition (your name on press releases, reporters calling you because your name is on the press release for the launch that YOU did all the work for) and 3) when you leave (if you move on or you're fired), Heather will trash talk you in a way to try to damage your reputation career. If you consider working here, ask for references of past employees (and check if during the interview process, one of the people who interviews you is fired or leaves by the time you get your job offer), be sure to get a clear job description and list of benefits in writing, and when you work here, keep clear records and/or take notes of improper treatment or inappropriate behavior. There are about 40 disgruntled past employees, and maybe only 1 or 2 that Heather may say left on "good terms" because she needs something from them (trip accommodations, referrals). But Heather will trash talk ALL of her past employees/anyone who left. I noticed it when I worked there, and just thought that if I stayed, it made me one of the few excellent people who could "make it" there. I was told my leaving was amicable, but have come to learn that Heather trash talked me to my former colleagues after I left. I understand the need to "spin" the turnover, but this is hurtful, especially for anyone who takes pride in their work, and, for those just starting out their careers who haven't built a strong network, it CAN ruin your career in PR. If you are a potential client, ask a lot of questions to determine their knowledge of technology. (It's very limited. if you don't know how to work skype, a Mac, your calendar, your phone, you shouldn't be in tech PR, much less in sr. management at a PR agency specializing in tech PR. One reason the junior staff does so much is that they know more than the sr. staff.) As with any PR agency, ask for references - past and current. Be weary of the one or two that you are given. Be sure to contact the companies listed on her roster to find out what it's like to work with her/her team. She will take clients on for free or very little, and that is how she has some good clients on the roster. So be sure to ask about retainer fees. DO read the other reviews...they are spot on. A few more negatives: -It's very difficult to get recognition. Heather's name is on every single press release for every client. As mentioned in other reviews, she also does not have any current staff info on the web site. -Docker has gotten an amazing amount of coverage. That is due to Gabe Taylor and other team members, not Heather Fitzsimmons. And Docker is a hot company, so yeah, it's getting a ton of coverage. -When Heather is in the office, it's a very unprofessional environment - when she's not staffing briefings, she's on facebook or linkedin, and she's always watching employees. If you are called into her office, she will mostly want to gossip about clients or employees, as opposed to actually working or discussing PR strategy. -The other reviews mentioned a problem with management and hostile environment. There is an air of distrust and paranoia. If you leave to take a personal call (reasonable since you're all working in one big room) or ask to leave for a Dr's appointment (also reasonable), Heather will think you are interviewing (and she will call in your friends/peers to discuss it). She does not like when employees leave to go to other agencies, so she will fire people before they can give notice. She wants to be able to claim that there were performance issues to prompt that person leaving, rather than that they left for a better opportunity.