
Company loyalty is definitely important, but so is basic self-preservation, and so when it looks like the business is headed for a spectacular collapse, it may be better to look towards the exit sooner rather than later. But how can you tell the difference between a firm going through a rough patch and a firm that's basically a sinking ship? One entrepreneur, according to an article in
Quartz, has a few answers.
He offers literally dozens of signs to look out for, some of which can be applied to small start-ups and others at larger, established businesses.
If you're at a large company, some of the things to look out for can be:
- Managers more concerned about meeting metrics than the underlying business fueling those metrics;
- bad leaders are shuffled around instead of let go because the company knows it can't find replacements;
- by contrast, rapid turnover of top executives: you've had five CEOs in as many years;
- the dental plan is the most attractive thing about working there
At startups, just some of the warning signs can include:
- The CEO keeps everything secret;
- when a product doesn't sell, the company blames the customers for not getting it;
- you get free lunch but have no customers;
- people there can't stand each other