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One rotten apple spoiled the bunch - Anonymous employee VMware Employee Review

5.0
5 Dec 2019
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

This company is amazing! Amazing benefits. Great progressive culture and a visionary of a CEO. I would still be there for years to come....if it weren't for my direct manager.

Cons

I left solely because of my direct manager. She micro managed, belittled, and down right disrespected individuals on her team and cross functioning teams. She was not a leader and ran her team like a dictatorship. I witnessed her yelling on the phone during online meeting and in no way shape or form embodied the vmware culture. Other people on the other side of the floor would hear her yelling. work from home is huge at vmware...not on her team. After months of asking for it we could work from home on Wednesdays only if she saw fit. One mistake and she would take the privilege away. Not sure if that was the culture previously before the company was acquired by vmware but sadly vmware HR dragged their feet on correcting the problem. They stood in solidarity with the manager instead of listening to the employees. She was very aggressive and made the environment very uncomfortable. Talk about being rattled with anxiety before a one on one. I tried to move to another department but she blocked it. I hear she still has her job but they moved her to be an individual contributor.....nice way to handle the problem.

Explore other reviews about VMware

5.0
24 Jun 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

VMware is a big company but in many ways had a startup vibe. That was great because the resources and infrastructure of a big company were there, but it gave most people I worked with freedom to work on many projects, influence, move around, and contribute in many ways. Plus, many things moved faster than they might at other companies of the same size. Perks were really great including bonuses, events on the campus, opportunities, etc.

Cons

The biggest con is the annual layoff. During most of the years I was there, we were growing like crazy, beating expectations, gaining in stock price, etc. It was always positive and upward. However, every single January, it was known that there would be a round of layoffs, even when all numbers were looking great as they almost always were. Management called it restructuring. But, over the years, some really good people were let go for no apparent reason. Then to add insult to injury, a week or two later, there would be a company quarterly meeting discussing how VMware was doing so well and is still hiring, but they had to make some changes. It always felt dishonest and the sympathy for those let go came across as disingenuous.

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