Pros
1.No Layoffs during my long term tenure 2.Embraces Remote Work 3.Used to be a great company backed by Christian values. 4.Education Reimbursement 5. If you had a great Manager/Director, things were great (ignore cons). If you did not it was bad (Read cons). I went from one to the other.
Cons
1. Organizational Tree Bloat -Seniors > Leads > Supervisors > Managers > Sr Managers > Directors > VPs' > SVP > EVP> SEVP> CEO. This became the most bloated technical company I ever worked for, with an alarming # of middle management having either antiquated or no relevant technical background. This company started off humble & small but hit a growth explosion that was IMO completely mishandled. -Non-technical managers and directors promoted those who mirror themselves. In other words, those who spend more time talking & self-promoting than having technical qualifications, focusing on the needs of the team and leading. 2. Poor Culture/Self Destructive practices -With the growth explosion,middle management began vying for promotions and prestige, introducing a a toxic culture. -Staff were often treated like 'resources'; bad employees were sheltered and hidden from public view so as to not rock the boat, make M.M "look bad", or risk losing FTE slots. -Hard-working employees were expected to shoulder the load until burnout. (why I and most of my circle left) -Hard-working employees were asked to work multiple roles instead of hiring appropriate staff to balance workload. “Work life Balance” is a term beaten to death but never practiced. Those who complained were treated poorly thus causing a residual exodus of overloaded staff who were not given relief or support. It was only after people left that management THEN hired multiple people to cover the duties of that one person . I am told this is still happening. 3. No Self-Investment - This company did NOT actively invest in the professional growth of it's own staff. Lots of preaching about promoting from within but rarely practiced it. - You were expected to pursue your own education, after which they would gladly give you more work/responsibility, with no benefit to you. (bonus/promotions/opportunity) - Current or Ex-Management seemed to get first pick at new opportunities (read: Good old boy network). Saw lots of managers position hop over the years, while others who tried to advance were stuck in their roles until they left. - There were implied ,but no actual defined career paths. The common advice was to leave the company and apply for roles externally for any decent salary or promotion increases. 4. Political Division/Office Politics -This company is split into two branches with different leadership structures, akin to what most companies refer to as Front Office and Back Office. -Front office for this company has IMO a negligent level of lack of technical ability and education (especially at the management level; the people responsible for hiring front office technical staff). -There was an unnatural division & rift between Front Office and Back office (common to a lesser extent I understand). -There was a lot of hateful 'us vs them’ rhetoric that spewed from the Front Office. Those who were unlucky enough to have more direct interface with front office were often the punching bag/took the brunt for back office leadership decisions. 5. Little to No Diversity where it matters. - For as diverse as the workforce is, you could count on one hand the # of non-white leaders in Back office, from the Director and up range (as of 1-2 years ago).
