The next NOKIA: Toxic sinking ship. Run, far away. - Lead Manager AT&T Employee Review

Ever since the DIRECTV merger, this company has gone down the tubes, fast. The work environment is so toxic and the customer service and product quality has gone down as a result. If you’re an AT&T customer and have noticed this, it’s because what your experiencing is a direct reflection of what is happening internally. Leadership (if you could call it that) is abysmal. The new normal is a competition on who can create the most pointless fire drills. Backstabbing, front stabbing, blatant disrespect for others, land grabbing, and battle of egos create daily mass chaos. Leadership only ever thinks weeks ahead let alone months or years ahead. Being demeaned by colleagues is a daily occurrence. The level of incompetence at a leadership level is truly astounding - VPs constantly being educated on the very function they are responsible for. Depth of knowledge for a function tends to end at “I use the internet” for someone who might lead a function within a digital team, for example. Innovation is a buzz word that is tossed around a lot but never really championed or celebrated. There are visionaries at the second management level but career development is no longer a thing at AT&T. Instead, second level managers spend most of their time explaining to Directors and above how to do their own job or explain the basics of what a particular team does. There is no chance a company in this much turmoil is going to beat the competition. If your ambitious, innovative, visionary, experienced and smart - this is not the place for you. Keep looking. Also, expect quarterly restructuring and lay-offs. If you want to work in marketing don’t bother unless you are from Los Angeles. Non-LA employees in marketing are treated like second-rate citizens and you won’t get promoted. Also, working mothers beware. You will be punished in many forms for taking maternity leave or for having kids, period. Know your rights.