The issues at Salesforce exist at the department / team level, which are led by terrible managers. This is obviously not the case with all departments - but my rating reflects my horrible experience with my department that has been embroiled in chaos for more than a year, with no end in sight. This department is central enough that the dysfunction here, will eventually result in a bad decisions for all other teams that interact with it.
The leader of this department has created an unhealthy work culture, where people do things because of fear. The leader openly chides senior leadership in public for small infractions, and does not accept dissent. They have openly punished individuals for speaking up. The working style has become uninspiring because pomp and show are prioritized over true value creation - this is demonstrated by the fact that the top achievements of the department as highlighted by the leader themselves are theoretical frameworks, and not actual proven methodologies. There are many smart people on the team, but the leader has narrowed in to their insecurities and manipulates them to make sure they only do and say things the leader wants. Otherwise, they are very efficient on getting rid of people who do not “please” the leader one way or another.
HR is kind but plays the therapist role rather than a facilitator. At least 25 people in our department have talked with HR. All we’ve heard is “Awww” and “it’ll get better, we will coach them” for the last 6 months. Can’t say we haven’t tried. We can’t all switch teams and ultimately it is the company’s responsibility to weed out bad leaders. It is not just people suffering (though of course Salesforce will say people are important) but business is suffering because we have a whole department that is wasting money, talent and resources - and no amount of escalation has yielded anything.
