Ever Wanted to Tell Your Boss Off? Now You Can Do It Anonymously

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Time to let the big man (or woman) with the corner office know what you really think.

Happiily, a Canadian start-up company, recently launched Tell Your Boss Anything, allowing employees vent their frustrations to their managers anonymously.

The service, which is designed to help facilitate relationships between the two parties, lets you express what’s on your mind without too much fear of retribution. Managers can also respond to commenters, and both sides get to rate the feedback.

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There is, of course, a limit to how much they’ll allow you to express yourself. Vulgar words and violent phrases are filtered out by the program, so you’ll have to check your anger at the door. Bosses can also flag messages if a commenter leaves a mean comment – revealing your identity.

Managers can only see messages from one sender for free; everything else costs $20 a month. Tom Williams, the founder who started the company, told Businessweek: “It’s an easy way [for employees] to feel secure that they won’t get retribution if their manager doesn’t like what they say.” Of course, it’s not the first or only program allowing users to send anonymous emails: this type of service has been in effect for years, with anonymous e-cards offering to alert recipients of anything from accidentally using their toothbrush to suggesting they get an STD test. But Williams’ Tell Your Boss Anything campaign wants to let the dialogue flow both ways, even while staying anonymous.

Of course, he adds, “Be mean, and you get what’s coming to you.” We suppose you could also offer praise to your employer, but really, why would you do that anonymously?

Erica Ho is a contributor at TIME and the editor of Map Happy. Find her on Twitter at @ericamho and Google+. You can also continue the discussion on TIME’s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.

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