Glassdoor CEO: ‘Anonymous posts will always stay anonymous’
Protecting anonymity is at the core of our mission and our pledge to our users. Recently, there has been some confusion around how we are maintaining anonymity on our platform with the addition of Glassdoor Community. I want to be clear: Anonymous posts on Glassdoor will always stay anonymous.
Anonymity is the lifeblood of Glassdoor. It allows people to share their work experiences, helping countless others, without fear of retribution or retaliation. The wealth of insights stems from the candid contributions of actual employees, who can express themselves openly thanks to our rigorous measures to help safeguard their identities.
Sustaining anonymity with Glassdoor Community
As the world of work rapidly changes, we’re seeing new expectations around workplace transparency. Last summer, we launched Glassdoor Community to enable professionals to connect for candid workplace conversations across careers, companies, and industries, improving their lives at work in myriad ways.
While reviews, ratings, and salary information posted by users on Glassdoor have always been and will always be anonymous, Glassdoor Community is designed to provide users with a choice: to post anonymously with their job title or employer name, or to use their full name.
Our experience shows that our users want greater flexibility in how they show up in conversations. Users often vary their level of anonymity with each post and comment they make, depending on the context. Today, approximately one-third of users share their full name when posting in Glassdoor Community.
To make Community work, we ask users to share their name, job title, and company name with Glassdoor during the sign-up process. This information helps users seamlessly engage in Community however they choose. If a user wants to participate in Community anonymously, they can do so. Or if a user wants to post with their own name, that option is also available to them. Glassdoor never reveals a user’s identity with any post in Community–users always get to decide what they want to share about themselves.
Promoting trust through verification
Creating safe and productive places for dialogue where professionals can share authentic feedback and engage in meaningful discussion means combining the benefits of anonymity with the accountability of verification. We securely confirm our users’ identities behind the scenes and we do not share any personal details publicly or with employers.
Asking for names helps maintain the integrity of our Community by attracting people with genuine intentions and deterring fraud or bad behavior. It also helps serve as a powerful deterrent against trolls and users who might abuse anonymity to spread misinformation, harass others, or engage in other toxic behaviors. When users know that their fellow Community members' identities have been verified, they can feel more confident engaging in authentic discussions with real professionals.
Empowering transparent workplace conversations
Glassdoor has evolved–but our commitment to user anonymity is steadfast, evidenced by more than 15 years of fighting for anonymous users to have their voices heard.
Having the power to be anonymous, but knowing that the people you are speaking with are verified, has enabled constructive conversations on a massive scale. Worklife is changing–and we’re focused on creating a home for real talk that enables anonymity and trust.
Christian Sutherland-Wong is the CEO of Glassdoor.
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