Backroads Reviews

Pros

To work with other hard working, committed, positive, smart, fun and respectful people everyday I am at work is something I never take for granted at Backroads. Having worked in other fields (education and finance, primarily), I feel like what Backroads creates in the workplace is a rare and special combination that adds to my fulfillment on the job. Additionally, I appreciate exercising the leadership that is required in this work, the autonomy and teamwork that is needed, and the fast-paced environment...as well as being outdoors when I'm "at the office". Not only are my colleagues great, but the better part of the clients I work with seem to be from the better part of society - meaning they are friendly, committed, intrested and intresting individuals. Service is a field that requires a lot of patience, regional/interpersonal knowledge and composure. I appreciate practicing these elements on all levels of the job, in the environment that Backroads has created. I also appreciate the way we are paid in that I am able to save a good amount during a season since I find I don't have time to be as active a consumer while I am working in the field.

Cons

The work is hard (but what work isn't?). In order to balance my life with the demands of the job I have needed to commit more time to down-time when I am off. I haven't had to do this in past work since the intensity of the work wasn't as great and in such short bursts as it is with Backroads. This took some adjustment at first, but now that I understand how best to work and rest, the balance has returned. Working in service can be trying as well, but some of the skills needed are useful in life in general, so the stress seems to be worthwhile overall. A supplemental portion of the pay I expect to earn is through tipping, and though most clients respect this expectation/standard, it is difficult when I/we are not acknowledged in this way to an adequate degree.

Advice to Senior Management

Keep doing a good job. Keep communicating clearly. Remember that encouragement goes a long way for field employees and neg. feedback needs to be administered with a more gentle touch than what you might do with employees in-house.

Pros

It is a phenomonal way to meet some incredibly inspiring and interesting people, to be able to live in regions and possibly even countries you may never have on your own, and a great "time waster" before settling down. There is also a huge trust in leaders, giving them company credit cards and full exposure to all documents from day 1.

Cons

-Low pay, no benefits unless you work for a certain amount of days, which most people don't hit
-Management styles are all different, and some clearly friendlier than others
-Very seasonal work, making off-seasons tough to get through financially

Advice to Senior Management

Communicate better with leaders about their performance, ESPECIALLY during training, and about what the job really entails. I can't tell you how many leaders I have spoken with that had no idea just how seasonal the work is.

Pros

Incredible opportunities: of course to travel and speak other languages and work outside, but more so to simply GROW and increase all kinds of skills that will serve you as well in the personal domain as in the professional. Company gives you a lot of responsibility and autonomy out of the gates, and it's your job to deliver. VERY high standards, which though require hard work, focus, a thick skin, and some grit, also are are very inspiring and motivating. Exceptional group of employees overall, both Trip Leaders as well as in the office, who take pride in the work they do. Superb leadership from senior management (thrived through two tough economic crises). Fair, consistent management overall. Don't believe other postings about low pay - leaders work hard but can receive very healthy TIP income and have virtually NO out of pocket expenses, making for one of the most sustainable seasonal jobs out there. Additionally, I applied originally to other like companies and none of them offered ANY travel pay, housing in field, insurance or 401K options - all offered by Backroads. Oh, and not to mention, the annual Staff Ride is one of the very best company benefits I've ever experienced or heard of!

Cons

Not a "con", more of a reality check: Backroads is a real meritocracy - if you can't deal with very high standards and a lot of feedback, this is not the job for you. Hard work alone does not insure advancement - performance does. Additionally, if you are not ready/willing to adapt to a seasonal job (meaning, manage to have low overhead and a backup plan for off-season), then again, not the job for you. Best advice is not to compare with 'normal' jobs, but to compare with other like jobs out there - you won't find many (or any) who are as great an employer as Backroads.

Pros

Get to see other parts of the US or other places in the world (not everyone goes abroad, only ones with language skills or good luck.) If someone likes seasonal work, May through October, it is full on work with winters off (roughly 20% leaders get winter work). Most of the trip leaders are awesome people! and to get to work with them is so great. A very tight knit group of people that are very welcoming of new leaders each year.

Cons

LONG hours for trip leaders, with a very large workload for a pretty low wage. Quite competitive to get a decent trip leading schedule.
Find that some of the people that move into management or office positions from leading, do so without further skills training, which can be detrimental to the growth or support.
A lot of ebb and flow with people coming and going from the company with layoffs and re-hires depending on economy.

Pros

Without a doubt, one of the best jobs I have ever had. This is a wonderful company with tremendous opportunity to grow, take on additional responsibility and meet amazing people.

Cons

As this is a private company, sometimes there are management decisions that employees do not agree with. While there is often lots of information given, sometimes big changes are made without much justification. Especially regarding compensation.

Pros

great travel perks
fun people
meet lots of contacts
chance to work in some of th most beautiful places in the world
drinking is encouraged. By the President.

Cons

TERRIBLE pay
barely health insurance - i mean YOU HAVE PEOPLE RIDING BIKES/DRIVING VANS ALL THE TIME. Insure your employees. Seriously.
politics, politics
seasonality
did i mention bad pay?

Advice to Senior Management

get health insurance, be fair with your trip leaders, try to maintain loyalty to long time leaders, and figureout ways to even out the tips situation so people dont spend their time away only to get the shaft.

Pros

Career advancement is based on personal achievement and skills. Very positive work environment. Office employees often come from a trip leader background, which means they generally have great communication skills and a positive attitude. Backroads is a work hard play hard environment, with annual staff bike rides (1-5 days long), an annual free camping trip as a guest, but with longer hours during the crunch periods of the year. The work force at Backroads is fairly young, with people who enjoy outdoor exercise (esp biking, of course) and getting together for happy hour after work. Co-workers are very intelligent, talented, and dedicated to their jobs, fostering a positive work environment geared toward continued business improvement and success.

Cons

Backroads has a very talented work force, and for the skills provided, the pay does not seem to measure up. Travel industries often pay less, so for many employees, the fun-and-travel-focused environment at Backroads makes up for the low pay. While most managers are communicative and supportive, I personally did not find much encouragement or support from my manager. Benefits are fairly average, though one great benefit is an additional week off to attend an annual Backroads camping trip for free. Some parts of the year are extremely busy, and a level of stress is felt around the office as people scramble to get deliverables done. Backroads is a medium-sized company so while there is room for promotion and career advancement, departments are fairly small and positions only open every so often.

Advice to Senior Management

Backroads has a unique culture, with supportive and engaging people who are committed to doing the best job for the company. I think Backroads will ultimately lose some very talented and key players by not paying salaries that match the skills provided and living costs in the Bay Area.

Pros

Travel, travel, travel. Lots of drinking, seemingly encouraged, even! Young, exciting coworkers. Relationships, with a captial 'R' between coworkers (and even guests) is mostly ignored! So have fun! Generally, all of lodging and many meals are covered for the several months at a time you are away from 'home' if you have a place to call home. Mostly a fun group of people of diverse experiences to work with.

Cons

Too much drunking, though this can easily be a positive. With us young employees often comes a lack of maturity in a few or actually, several of your coworkers. Pay is generally bad, especially to start with, but you don't take a job like this for the money. You take for being with people (coworkers and guests alike), travel and outdoors experiences. Despite its attempt at being an open organization, once you get over, say five employees, politics, bad mouthing, back stabbing to get the better tours, incompetence is fully visible and in effect, just like any other company. This is usually pretty easy to avoid or get over, but they do tend to hire strong personalities and there is going to be the inevitable clash in your time there. Most everyone I worked had someone on their "do not want to work with list." The guests tend to be high maintenance and largely conservative, but this is customer service at a very high level, so if you can't deliver high-end service or keep your politics to yourself, don't bother applying.

Advice to Senior Management

More diverse hiring. This is such a plain, caucasian work plaace. It used to be about 75% female, but they have worked to balance this and bring it closer to 60/40 approaching 50/50. Now, do that ethnically. I believe this isn't done, not just because they don't apply (not one minority in my hiring or interview group), but because most of the guests/clients aren't minorities. That's a big market to be tapped. Also, the pay is pretty bad and you'll likely not keep people on as they'll find better offers.