I have been liberated from Paper’s toxic grasp, finally having the ability to find the peace I need to write a review that ought to repel anyone who’s ever interested in pursuing any sort of career at this company. If you are a potential hire perusing Glassdoor in hopes of finding reviews that might mimic what the talent acquisition team has told you about how we are “changing the face of education,” I suggest pivoting your job search elsewhere. If you’re looking for a great read about the horrors of working at this company, please read this until the end and then scroll through pages of employees, most of whom were terminated for no reason or left because their trauma became too much to bear, sharing their tragic truths. Buckle up! From my first moments until my last, Paper had the tightest grasp on my life, soul, and sanity. I often joked with my colleagues that we all suffered from a bad case of professional Stockholm syndrome. It wasn’t that funny; I have a bad habit of laughing at my trauma, but I digress. In my short time here, I saw my department reorganize (i.e., professionally massacre multiple employees) many times. Each time, we were gaslit, by the infamous director, that it’s what was best and/or what we wanted. I have had the utmost privilege of working with some of the most brilliant people I’ve met, most of whom were pigeonholed and made to believe that they were worthless and useless. Paper will do just that - strip you of your worth, agency, and power. You will be silenced, berated, and exploited. Those who rise through the ranks either jump on the abuse bandwagon and/or become yes people. Anyone who stands firm in their morals and values is quickly pushed out. Advocacy does not fly here; never advocate for what’s right, especially publicly, unless you’re ready to land a (not so) coveted spot on the infamous black list. Most marginalized folks end up on this list as well (re advocacy). This company has an ‘interesting’ way of painting people who expose problems as the problem. They’re usually quickly terminated or leave post emotional breakdown. Whenever employees are terminated, the survivors are expected to absorb the work of their beloved fallen angels. A common thread that goes through this company is that every employee is always either on the verge of burnout and/or needing intensive clinical help. I guess some might argue that those fall into the same bucket, but I digress once again. My colleagues and I were all severely overworked, underpaid, and miserable. Unless you make your way into a chosen circle, you will feel like you are always under a cloak of invisibility. Many of my colleagues made desperate attempts to get noticed and were hypercompetitive. I don’t blame them; they became a product of their environment. Employees are often expected to and bullied into working nights and weekends. Once, someone was celebrated for closing a deal during their wedding weekend. This is the culture here. All to say, the working conditions were awful and we were never made to feel important (I guess you can work on your wedding weekend for some extra cookie points!). This company will only take from you. It took my time, well-being (physical, emotional, mental), self-worth, and self-esteem, not to mention the negative impact on my personal relationships. There are times where I don’t even recognize myself anymore and question everything about who I’ve become. If you do end up taking a job here, I wish you all the best. I also wish that you have the best therapist in the world because you’ll need them. To semi quote a controversial author: I have no master. I am a free elf. Peace and love.
