There is a LOT so I will bullet point (and even this is cut down because I can't be bothered).
- Worst HR team I've ever dealt with. BY FAR. 'People Team'? Not a chance. No one has any idea what they're doing, there is no support, only ONE person in the 'People Team' was approachable.
- It's a Boys Club. It's been mentioned before and HX can say all they want that it doesn't exist but it does. They'll make it seem like you can get far but it's a glass ceiling. They only work with men that are old family friends. No new talent is genuinely considered. If you're female, don't bother. If you're a mother, DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME.
- The favouritism at Holiday Extras is rife. If you're not friends with the right person (or brown-nosing the right person) you won't get anywhere. The amount of talent they have lost over the years because they're giving friends (and family!) opportunities is ridiculous. Again, if you're female, don't bother.
- The whole environment is snakey and toxic now. Everyone is overworked. Underpaid. Hard-workers are overlooked (again, favouritism). It's a degrading, unhappy place to work and I wasted years of my life working there.
- The decisions made as part of the redundancies this year were absolutely disgusting. The decisions themselves (i.e. who gets the absolute privilege of keeping their job and who gets the boot) were DESPICABLE. How the senior leaders and managers who made those terrible decisions sleep at night I don't know. How you got rid of mothers, fathers, hard-working, long-serving employees for people who had been hired only months prior, had been hired to cover maternity leave, had been underperforming for months, is absolutely disgusting. You made poor, inhumane choices and ruined peoples lives.
- There is no room for creativity. Got an idea? Don't bother sharing it. It'll be approved, you'll spend 6 months working on it, then out of nowhere you'll be told what to do by a consultant or senior leader who isn't involved in the area at all. I don't know why they hire creative roles - they only need project managers that will do exactly what they tell them to.
- On top of everything, my manager didn't reach out ONCE to see how I was during the redundancy process. 5 months have passed since I lost my job and I have received a text, email or Facebook message from them checking how I am. I spent many, many years spent at Holiday Extras and a fair chunk in their team and to receive absolutely nothing is inhumane and poor, poor behaviour. It was the managers who made the terrible decisions as to who to keep and who to get rid of and whether it's awkward or not, they should 100% show compassion and act with humanity which has not happened. It was the worst part of being made redundant. The stress and anxiety of losing my job and not having enough money to pay my bills was minimal compared to the fact that a) my manager didn't reach out at all b) barely anyone in my team got in touch and c) the stakeholders/people I had worked FOR for years not a single person reached out to say sorry/hope you're ok/thanks for everything. Inhumane. I couldn't be more disappointed in Holiday Extras and everyone that works there.
