Selectica Reviews

Pros

Any CEO who puts his cell phone number up on the last slide of his presentation to over 80 customers in the room at a recent user conference has my respect. He not only did that, he told them to call anytime, even on weekends if they ever had any questions, concerns or problems. That took guts and a passion for serving customers, and those values are what this company is all about. You hear the word “passion” a lot and also see people who are on a mission to delight customers. That commitment to openness that Jason Stern showed in that recent customer meeting permeates the company.
The pace in the company is fast, and there are plenty of opportunities to make an impact in your area. Having come from another software company that was more regimented and stiff, working around the young, high energy, intelligent and fun senior management team is a great break from the status quo. Selectica today is all about pursuing a great vision of the future and being around people who are passionate about what they do.

Cons

Commute distance can be a challenge on heavy traffic days or when rain and fog force the 101 to a crawl. Limited dining options for lunch within walking distance.

Advice to Senior Management

Stay passionate about the vision you have and keep it real with the customers. Many customers at FUSION said it was the the most valuable Selectica conference ever, and they are excited about their future with the company.

Pros

Great co-workers, positive reinforcement for a job well done, no heavy-handed micromanaging, environment focused on innovation and collaborative thinking, increased focus on internal teambuilding events, nearby public transportation and plenty of parking for commuters.

Cons

Walking-distance retaurant options limited, but adequate. Plenty of nearby, driving-distance lunch spots.

Advice to Senior Management

Continue with the teambuilding activities- the staff appreciates the opportunities to interact outside of the cubes!

Pros

It's like it's a different company than back in '07-09. The leadership knows where they want to take the company, and most of us are excited about it. The bad / lazy managers got kicked out, the good ones are getting promoted quickly. The current team knows what they're doing. It didn't used to be like that. A couple of people that left years ago have come back. Overall, the vibe is really good now. Everbody there wants to accompish something and make a name for themselves.

People there are really into being healthy--the company pays for part of your gym membership, and everybody seems to belong to one. They have a machine in the kitchen that measures BMI that people are trying all the time.

Cons

The office space is boring. They say we're moving in the fall, though. The president doesn't like the space either so hopefully the new space will be more interesting. There's also only about a dozen restaurants in walking distance, and they get really old.

Advice to Senior Management

Keep on doing what you're doing!

Pros

Selectica has a fast moving,decision oriented culture. They know how to celebrate their wins. Fun people work there and you can work with automony.

Cons

The driving distance from my home was a serious problem. The industrial park location was limited in terms of quick lunches.

Advice to Senior Management

Take the time to do more thorough quality control before releasing new products so that analysts and customers will be more liekly to reference you.

Pros

Simple, smart engineers. Very friendly culture, focused on delivery while empowering employees to manage their own time and effort. Great pay and benefits.

Cons

Long term vision could have been better, but now that it seems to be turning around, looks like they fixed it.

Advice to Senior Management

Nothing as of now

Pros

- Very talented people
- Good customer base
- Robust Product Line
- Flexible work hours
- Competitive Compensation

Cons

- Lack of innovation
- Silo information and not shared
- Senior Mgt not sure of the direction and not plugged with industry trends
- Lot of fiefdoms and partiality towards groups

Advice to Senior Management

- Align with the industry

Pros

Just another job to work at. Located in the heart of silicon valley. Nobody cares if there is work done or not and nobody is accountable.

Cons

Management team disconnected from the employees. Unless you are HR or management you are not part of the team. You are just a worker bee who no body cares if you are there or not.

Advice to Senior Management

Look beyond yourself. Your employees are your best assets. Make them feel so.

Pros

Was good for a while but really went downhill. There were great opportunities during the growth of the company but as the climate got worse the decisions became ridiculous.

Cons

Dilbert-like culture. Arbitrary promotions and firings. Decision-making was crazy, management didn't have a clue what to do. I left with no confidence about senior management.

Advice to Senior Management

Quit your job and retire. Please. The software industry is better off without you. You are providing no value, so why stay?

Pros

Selectica was founded on a terrific premise, but the market for the technology was very limited - to the Global Fortune 50 perhaps. Management tried hard to make several course corrections and going into the SaaS space was the right decision as it greatly expanded the addressable market. Some great folks and a very close knit team, particularly with the contract management group.

Cons

Small company that should not be public.

Advice to Senior Management

Get some strong leadership soon, use cash in the bank to change the business model and get the company back on track.

Pros

The technology was industry leading for a while but has since tapered off.

Access to some of the best hi-tech clients in the world like IBM, Cisco, Dell etc.

Lots of cash in the bank. So they can pay salaries for a long time.

Not much work to do. So you can collect a paycheck and do something else on the side.

Cons

No growth prospects
Infighting
Stagnant Salary
Bad reputation

Advice to Senior Management

Nothing that can help