WHILE annual dinners and employee rewards are meant to foster a sense of appreciation and morale, a recent story shared by a Malaysian employee paints a different picture of how such gestures can be used to manipulate appearances rather than recognise genuine contributions.
An employee working in a small company for the past three years shared how lavish rewards gifted to department heads tragically turned out to be mere props used to maintain the company’s image and reputation.
In a post on the Facebook page XUAN, the employee recounted attending their first annual dinner – where many attendees won generous “lucky draw” prizes such as MacBooks, vacuum cleaners, and cash angpaos.
However, they later discovered through the grapevine that a MacBook presented to a department head as a reward allegedly turned out to be an empty box.
Assuming it was just a fluke, the department head raised the issue with upper management, only to be allegedly met with the response: “Haven’t you already taken enough?”
“That moment really opened my eyes. I realised that maybe what I saw on the surface wasn’t the whole truth.
“Maybe this kind of thing isn’t rare in companies, but I didn’t expect such politics in a small company,” they reflected in the post.
The employee then described how another colleague had resigned without notice after being sidelined and labelled as “troublesome”. Over time, the workplace environment became increasingly difficult, prompting a wave of resignations.
Furthermore, the employee realised the company primarily cared about appearances – frequently taking photos during events and meals, which were later used in recruitment adverts to portray an image of a “warm and loving team”.
One particular event stood out: an evening at the boss’s home, where attendees were told they were the “first group” ever invited.
“More often than not, we were just ‘arranged’ to attend and cooperate for the sake of those photos. Sometimes, we were even instructed to act enthusiastic and engaged at specific moments.
“We felt like props for showcasing the company’s ‘culture’,” the employee added.
The employee’s account has resonated with many online, sparking a broader conversation about the often-overlooked internal politics of small companies.
“It’s exactly these small companies that tend to operate more like cowboys. Bigger companies usually have clear policies and structures in place,” one user remarked.
“Nothing surprising, really. I used to work at a company where the boss and employees only totalled 10 people. The company slogan was ‘Small idea, big impact’ — but I always said it should be ‘Small company, big politics.’ Unsurprisingly, the employee turnover rate was very high,” another commented.