Prós
- The hiring process was organized and efficient. The recruiter was friendly, clear, and responsive.
- Did meet several lovely folks. Good humans overall.
- Likely a good company for those who are billable.
- More PTO than I knew what to do with.
- Remote work with regular in-person get togethers.
Contras
I will preface this by saying it was not a good fit for either myself or the company. This is just my personal experience.
- The firm was not well-known in the US. There did not appear to be a strong senior leader responsible for establishing and growing the US market. I did not experience a willingness to formalize a marketing or brand strategy. I was told it was the Global Marketing team's responsibility. I felt it made more sense partner with the larger global marketing team who already understood the brand and are in markets where the firm had a good reputation and/or success, but such collaboration was often frowned up.
- Unwilling to invest in “non-billable” time for full-time technical staff to do to network or relationship-build. The team seemed to think a few marketing emails and one small LinkedIn campaign would bring in legitimate leads for a company with no footprint or brand awareness. I did not get the impression they were willing to stick with it or had the patience it required.
- Appeared to be an over-reliance on freelance writers and graphic designers. I felt this led to lack of brand understanding and cohesiveness. I think there is a missed opportunity to bring that talent in-house. There is no shortage of content, but it’s not properly deployed. Content only seemed to only be engaged with by other employees.
- I struggled to reconcile offering a Design Service when there seemed to be limited investment in the design and functionality of their own website. (This could have changed now.)
- I appreciated seeing and meeting coworkers in person, but I found the quarterly in-person meetings lacked clear objectives, training opportunities, and accountability measures. For example, there was never an agenda.
- Company does not budget. In order to receive funds for initiative/projects, you submit a written paper and share it with the entire company for feedback and comments. I understand the concept, appreciate the transparency, and recognize this is what many love about the company. However, I found it challenging in regards to marketing.
- No Human Resources department when I was there. There seemed to be confusion about processes/COBRA paperwork after being laid off. After being notified of my layoff, I was asked whether I would be willing to continue working for an additional two weeks. (This could be something legally required to be offered in other countries, I'm not sure.)
- A few times, management spoke poorly of former employees which made me feel uncomfortable.
Overall, I often felt there was uncertainty about a long-term commitment to building a US marketing function.
