It’s like Rotten Tomatoes – for employees. According to Entertainment Weekly, the new website getUnvarnished.com is causing an internet ruckus as people fear that their coworkers may use it to anonymously bash them. The site describes itself as “an online resource for building, managing, and researching professional reputation, using community-contributed, professional reviews.”
Basically, anyone can anonymously critique how you handle yourself professionally — your skill, productivity, relationships, and integrity. The site claims it will foster candid but fair reviews that “maintain a helpful, business-focused approach” by allowing Unvarnished users to rate each other’s critiques, so each person has a “Reviewer Authority score.” Individuals can create their own profile or claim one that has already been built for them by someone who has reviewed them; either way, they cannot delete reviews — they only have the opportunity to respond to them.
There are actually sites already like this: RateMyProfessors.com was a big part of choosing classes when I was in college. RateMDs.com is an example of a similar rating site for doctors.
Here, the difference is that you can rate people you deal with on a daily basis. I understand that Unvarnished’s anonymity is intended to encourage honesty without fear of repercussions, but anonymity is also to blame for the vitriol that tarnishes message boards everywhere. Will people actually use Unvarnished in a professional way, or be insulting and hurtful?
The more important question is – will employers take it seriously? Will job seekers have to worry about their profiles following them into job interviews?
