#favoritism

People quitting every month. Almost no chance of moving up. Clear favoritism along ethnic lines. And the list goes on and on. And the sad thing is that I remember when this was a great place to work. When it earned the top spot on the best workplace lists. And that wasn't even that long ago.

I've got nothing. Maybe that's the real issue here.

I want Nike to succeed, but what’s happening in certain areas is deeply concerning and hard to ignore.

Not all managers are part of this, and there are still many who lead with integrity. However, in some cases, hiring is clearly not based on merit. Positions are being filled through favoritism and personal connections, including close associates and family members and friends of managers—this is nothing but nepotism.

There are also serious concerns about unethical practices tied to hiring decisions, where managers appear to benefit from perks such as holiday packages, gift vouchers, or other incentives from contracting firms especially CW. That crosses the line from bias into corruption.

At the same time, genuinely skilled, hardworking, and committed employees have been let go, while those benefiting from these practices remain. This sends a message that integrity and capability are not always valued equally.

That said, there is life outside this company. Many of us who left including me have found better opportunities where merit, transparency, and hard work are recognized and rewarded.

If these practices continue, they will damage not only employee morale but also the company’s long-term credibility and success. No organization can grow sustainably on favoritism and unethical decision-making.

Does it ever end??? This is the worst company I’ve ever worked for! This company seems to hire toxic leadership on purpose. I have yet to meet anyone that is satisfied with the ill treatment we are met with from the leaders. The only time we get told we are doing well is right before leadership requires us to take on another meaningless project. We are over worked because those that perform well are only left to pick up the slack of the “favorites” while the favorites get paid more for doing less. I’m expected to do my managers job as well. I think I’d rather quit and take the chance of starving to save my self from this soul crushing place. I have the rudest B5 lead on team! He was a manager but was demoted due to his employee survey scores & when I tell my direct manager I am met with “ Trust me he doesn’t want to be a people leader y’all get on his nerves” if that’s the case why is he left in charge of us while your on maternity leave? It’s been he-l on Earth at this place.

Brokerage, Wealth, WI, PI are all under WEALTH as a BU.

Back in 2024, they split Wealth into Personal investing (PI) and Workplace Investing (WI) that had some impact and layoffs.

But the move did not make sense long term and hence with Emerson's and Bob's move Brokerage, PI, WI are again considered "Wealth" as a one BU and there's push to consolidate operations that do similar work.

With that, there will be obviously some redundancies that will be introduced.
Some slackers who have been coasting for years, will be exposed along with managers pets and those managers who are responsible for encouraging these pets.

Majority of these "pet owners" tend to be CL and GCLs, not just in Wealth but across company.

What's unfortunate is that there are some chapter leads who got "lucky" and are now "Engineering leads" but still promote favouritism.

It all stems from their own insecurity, they downplay achievements of high performer pushing them to deal with all sorts of stress, anxiety and uncertainty.

They will talk big game in the face but seriously lack basic documentation skills.

Nepotism is everywhere, sure, but this place has industrialized it. Leadership’s kids, cousins, college roommates, golf buddies, family friends, Intel connections, and basically anyone who’s ever made it onto the holiday card list get quietly slotted into comfortable roles, while layoffs sm--k around the downtrodden and the rest of us sit here waiting to see whose number gets called next. And somehow, they still have the audacity to parade it all over LinkedIn and every other social platform like it’s a leadership masterclass, a kind of “how to succeed in business” series where step one is simply being related to the right person. At this point, merit isn’t just optional, it’s almost suspicious.

Is favoritism a common thing in your department? Manager overlooks/makes exception for a certain employee but either micromanages or ignores the rest of the team.

Windstream/Kinetic employee here looking for advice or feedback on all your former leaders coming over here. They are not making friends and ripping the company that we spent nearly a decade building apart. They have come in like a wrecking ball and it seems if you are not part of their inner circle then you don’t mean anything to them. They might be smart folks but their people skills are awful and the only opinions they care about are their buddies they brought over. Are you happy they are gone or do you miss them? Help me understand my future lol

Lot of management favorite employees were RIFed.
They got good severance packages.
Were rehired back as consultants @ $100 per hour rate.
Some middle management managers are playing this game.

Leadership is something that employees aspire to become one day. Our leaders are nothing but that. These are people who are so called HiPos stepped over others, stayed not more than two years, did nothing of value to the corporation but perception and favoritism moved them up and is reflected in poor leadership and zero vision that we see today. They travel for no reason, present mundane powerpoint slides just to show that they are busy to their division. Where will it end? These are the people that board trusted to lead in to the future?

Let me describe how this place works. First pillar, punishment. Make a small error and they'll remind you for months. Second pillar, fear. Nobody feels safe. Everyone's waiting for the other shoe to drop. Third pillar, favoritism. Certain people can do no wrong. They get the promotions, the good projects, the protection. Everyone else gets the scraps. That's the culture. That's how they run things. And it's not just unpleasant, but also abusive. It wears you down until you don't even remember what normal feels like.

So many posts about EIA snub and no recognition highlighting individual accomplishments with EIA.

An EIA IMHO stands for excelling individual, yet if you win something and instead just receive "great job team" it tells you how Chennai connection or being in Bangalore-ham is what will make you be recognized.

A person with 5 yr anniversary gets all the accolades while the one who is celebrating 10 yr anniversary doesn't get nothing, coz they're not from the same region.

This culture is what drives toxic corporate politics in every team I have been part of since 6 years.

Last winter two people in my team received EIA, both received detailed individual details on what they did.

This year two people in my team received EIA but this time, the comment they received was "great job team". All because they're not in same location as rest of the team.

So that's clearly a sign of managers playing favourites, purposely not choosing to highlight individual accomplishments.

In short, the associates who received EIA this year, would have mixed feelings about it as EIA comments go in towards year end review. So with nothing to show for, it's obvious how sick these things are.

Only Bangalore-ham or Chennai connection is what gets you recognized.

That's Fiserv's recipe for disaster.

I'm in therapy now thanks to this job. I did everything right, great reviews, no issues. New management is awful, threatening, plays favorites. I have a health condition that needs good insurance and I live somewhere with few other jobs. So I stay. But I'm done ki-ling myself for them.

Want a promotion? Make friends with the higher ups. That's it. But know that after you get promoted, you're more likely to get cut. Higher pay has become a liability. There's no winning here anymore.

We noticed lots of greencard and US citizens were laidoff where H1b in same team survived. This seems one of favoritism for low cost worker. Filed a case for this.
Seems lots of H1b frauds floating around in Texas and Nashville and Oracle is hiring H1b's here ...
The Indian managers who held H1b and laidoff US residents should be questioned.
Lots of news floating around on H1b fraud now.

We have internal job postings all the time, but it’s becoming pretty obvious a lot of them already have someone in mind. People go through the entire process and then lose out to someone who seems pre-selected. Why even put it up if you already know who you're going to give it to?

Or working hard, for that matter? There's no path upward. Promotions happen under circumstances that are genuinely baffling, and never seem tied to actual performance. Meanwhile, the real backbone of the teams, the impressive professionals, get passed over every time. I'll go further - being qualified practically disqualifies you from moving up.

Watching promotions happen makes you wonder whether performance is really the deciding factor or if knowing the right person is the trump card.

Title says it all. Some areas are far worse than others.

Awful leadership
Open favoritism
You can forget about coaching or career development
You’re treated as a number and replaceable
Pay and benefits are subpar
Little to no accountability
And so on...

I can’t confirm whether every rumor going around is true, but I can speak to what many of us see and feel inside the team. There’s a clear sense of favoritism and decisions that don’t always seem based on merit.
It’s also concerning to watch the CEO receive multimillion‑dollar compensation while work is being sent overseas, reducing local opportunities and creating even more uncertainty for employees.
This isn’t about attacking anyone or repeating unverified claims. It’s about pointing out a culture where some people protect each other while others are left vulnerable, which naturally creates distrust and discourages those who work with integrity.
Fair leadership should focus on transparency, equity, and real accountability.

Today we found out that a member from my team who has only been on the team for two years will be getting promoted. That person is still very new and has a lot of questions and in my opinion work to do. One of other members on the team who has been here for 6 years is always helpful, knowledgeable, and shockingly passed for this promotion. If anyone deserves it then it’s him and I’m shocked he didn’t get it. Surprised manager or vp didn’t feel this way and went with the other team member.

It's becoming impossible to ignore the fact that certain people get access to opportunities the rest of us don't even know exist, not to mention are considered for. It's always the same names for every good project, every interesting assignment. I guess hard work doesn't matter if you're not in the right group.

I just watched someone present the project I've been leading for months as if they did all the work. No mention of me, no acknowledgment, just their name on my effort. This isn't the first time either. I'm so tired of watching other people build their reputations off what I actually do.

My manager plays favorites openly, and if you're not in the clique, good luck. And God forbid you push back, suddenly you're on their radar in the worst way. Toxic doesn't even cover it.

What’s exhausting is the sense that there’s a permanent inner circle. The same names recommend each other, amplify each other, and open doors for each other while outsiders are quietly ignored. It creates a culture where talent and contribution matter less than who you’re already connected to.

I filed a complaint with HR against my horrible manager last December and never received a response. I followed and still heard nothing.
Last week, during my 1:1 with him, I told him I had tolerated enough and confronted him about favoritism, dishonesty, improper practices, and unethical behavior. A couple of days later, HR suddenly scheduled a private meeting on my calendar.
In that meeting, they told me not to discuss the matter with anyone and said the investigation was about my interaction with my manager that happened on Monday. When I asked why no one ever reviewed the complaint I submitted four months ago, they gave vague excuses. I then pointed out that the same HR representative interviewing me now was the one assigned for the case I opened months ago...Because I’m not in management, they ignored my complaint. HR is useless...

Look around at who gets ahead. It's the people who say yes to everything and know how to flatter the right folks. They can't actually do the technical work. Ask them to solve a real problem and they fall apart. Empathy? Leadership skills? Not a chance. They just know how to climb.

You get to experience favoritism, nepotism, and exploitation. No growth at all. Leaders who only care about themselves and face no consequences for anything. Great place.

Watching promotions happen makes you wonder whether performance is really the deciding factor.

After years of working hard and doing everything possible to earn a director role, I eventually realized I was being strung along. My director repeatedly made promises about promotion that never came through, while simultaneously expecting me to prioritize hiring people from his own nationality. That environment made it clear that growth there was never going to be based on merit for women at this company. Walking away was not easy, but I’m incredibly relieved to have finally found a way forward.

I don't get it. I've watched two managers make huge errors, cost the company, and get promoted anyway. No connections, just rewarded for failure. What am I missing?

MST home dispatch tech use and abuse company assets. They drive 100K-200K bucket trucks to their home and back to their home garage everyday. Big V8 6.3 L engines use a lot of gas and insurance on top. Also, with MST high pay and only have .5 job per tech a day per tech how is that saving company money and liability.
There are rules to follow when joining home dispatch program. Following the rules helps save gas and time and wear and tear on a vehicle used to drive to work and to home. But MSTs abuse this program from driving to the garage every day and dispatching at the garage. Making a stop at the grocery store to grocery shop in the company vehicle before driving home. Not closing your last job at the job site and instead, drive home and being still dispatched on your work ticket and then closing the job when you arrive home. I follow the rules, and I do not want the home dispatch program to go away because of MSTs taking advantage of the abuse. Also, MST managers are favoring many MSTs and letting the home dispatch MSTs do what ever they want. STOP ABUSING THE HOME DISPATCH PROGRAM YOU MSTs. You know who you are...

How can an individual contributor ever hope for an exceeds expectations rating when they are being calibrated against managers? The visibility, opportunities, and important meetings that managers are privy to isn't an option for individual contributors -- at least not on my team. It is not a level playing field. The managers should be calibrated against other managers, and individual contributors against other individual contributors. This would require more of a general pool approach with milestones adjusted per level-- not so much role. Managers should be expected to perform at a higher level, but the way it's set up now, the bar is same for managers and individual contributors, yet the opportunities to exceed the bar is not. With the "rationing" of exceeds expectations -- it is even more important that at least the playing field is as fair as possible. There is also too much of an opportunity for nepotism and favortism the way it is set up now. Where are the checks and balances? How do you keep someone from saving a favorite who is barely performing at all by stealing from the kitty to under rate a top performer?

i'd start with "eliminating favoritism" - it's soo rampant in my group...

Supposedly Belk corporate has been urged to rethink and reorganize the best of belk awards for 2026 as many employees say they can be construed as favoritism and discriminatory. If associates receiving the awards are receiving gratis, small gifts, extra employee discount, or other perks, and the qualifications for the award are vague, unclear, or if someone with better metrics and performance didn’t receive an award it can be a strong discrimination/favoritism issue.

Are promotions based on performance, or is it just a leadership friendship club benefit?

Hey HR ask these questions on the next survey!

Is leadership a meritocracy or a friendship club?
Do promotions require performance or proximity?
Is feedback only “constructive” when it comes from certain mouths?
Are stretch assignments reserved for the already favored?
Does accountability skip over the chosen few?
When mistakes happen, does context matter more depending on who made it?
Is visibility earned, or inherited through alignment?
Are we building a team, or curating a personality match collection?
If English fluency equals competence, are we measuring skill or accent?
When someone “plays d-mb,” is it ignorance or convenience?
If fairness is real, why is the pattern so predictable?
Why does “culture fit” always seem to fit the same people?

It’s draining pretending not to see it. It’s more draining pretending it doesn’t affect morale.