Brooks Sports Reviews

Pros

A pretty darn fantastic company to work for. Lots of potential to make an impact on a young and rapidly growing company. Management recognizes accomplishments and what you bring to the table as well as seeking input and allowing one to take on responsibilities. Overall feel proud and fortunate to work for Brooks.
-Dress Code
-Discounted and free shoes and apparel
-Easy going atmosphere
-Able to make a mark and contribute and be recognized!
-Management has shown a great deal of respect for others views and requests input
-Projected move to Fremont will make the working conditions and environment really amazing
-A Run Happy ethos permeates everything

Cons

Overall no complaints, other than the commute to Bothell. The office can be a bit cliquey, but overall a pretty great place to work. If you are not a runner you can feel left out.

Advice to Senior Management

Carry on with your plans - the company is growing and gaining market share. Don't be arrogant, maintain an ear on the ground to get feedback and maintain the focus on service and providing the best product in the marketplace.

Pros

Culture, product, leadership, passion, talent; clarity of vision

Cons

Immature processes; operational discipline; gossip;

Pros

Ability to run during lunch breaks (encouraged to do so by most departments).

Free clothing and shoes if you are sample size.

Casual clothing and fun dress up days.

Customer service department is filled with fun, energetic people (I didn’t work in that department).

Always have a running buddy available that is your speed.

Some people are extremely genuine and wonderful to work with (likely you will have to look outside of your department to find this though).

Cons

Gentle personalities never are promoted – you have be competitive and pushy to ever be noticed.

Underpaid - the stress that employees are put under makes the money not worth it.

If you aren’t fast, you aren’t in the “cool club”.

Environment isn’t professional (reminds me of high school where the cool kids make the calls, and everyone else is expected to follow).

Women are overlooked unless they have an aggressive personality and speak their minds all the time.

Particular departments don’t encourage working out and being healthy which makes it hard if you are part of that department and want to enjoy the Brooks atmosphere as a whole.

Work load is never constant - often it is way too much, other times it is just right.

One of those companies that from the outside looks like the best place to work ever, but once you finally get there, you are left disappointed.

Advice to Senior Management

Listen to employees that aren’t as pushy.

Make the environment more professional – reward intelligence and hard work, not personality and popularity.

Get all departments involved in the “run happy” atmosphere so everyone can actually enjoy the “Brooks environment”.

Pros

Do not have to work too hard

Cons

No room for advancement and growth

Advice to Senior Management

Stop micro-managing. Upper management baby sits incompetent employees and does not allow supervisors who are responsible for P&L to implement change.

Pros

- Employees are ncouraged to run or go workout daily during work hours or lunch
- Free onsite gym
- Easy comfortable dress code: You can wear Brooks gear and running shoes all day/every day
- Very understanding about maternity, paternity, or illness leaves
- Can be a fun place to work, they try to make it so
- Nice running trails right outside the door
- Lots of free gear/shoe samples distributed on fairly regular (but unexpected) basis--an email goes out and stampede begins
- They'll sponsor employees fees for certain (number of) races each year
- LOTS of encouragement for people who run in events
- Great operations team, especially in distribution center
- Once they get to know you, most people are generally nice--except the running cliques

Cons

- Boys club environment--especially in management, sales, and footwear
- Management lets sales call the shots
- For a small company, seriously poor inter-departmental communication
- Strong competition and certain amount of secrecy between silos (Sales, Marketing, Footwear, Apparel) makes collaboration difficulty
- A work culture based on competitive long-distance running seems to breed a competitive, non-collaborative environment
- Company fractured into exclusive cliques, often based on age, sex, and running times
- Sales team = frat boy atmosphere that's condoned by upper mgmt because "Boys will be boys"
- Lots of promotions to men, not women, even when the woman is better qualified/better candidate
- Success here is often decided on personality, not competence
- If you don't have a cheery "FUN" demeanor or personality, you won't make it
- If you're not a runner, you will feel like an outsider the whole time you're there

Advice to Senior Management

Be decisive
Be bold
Be consistent
Don't put the cart before the horse (i.e. "let's be green!", before you're actually green)
Cool the "frat boy" atmosphere

Pros

Great atmosphere and employees at Brooks.

Cons

The commute to Bothell can be long from Seattle.

Advice to Senior Management

Continue to push the ingenuity and creative envelopes.