Solera Holdings Reviews

Pros

For now, there aren't a lot of good reasons to work for Solera. There is a generally good team of software and test engineers. There are a few good teams to work for if you're lucky enough to get hired into them.

Cons

Long unpredictable hours and regular night work detract from the work environment. Management has made the decision to close down most of the San Ramon technical center and move to cheaper labor in San Diego and Mexico. This has resulted in a lot of engineers losing their jobs. Many engineers were told how valued they were in a group meeting, but were not offered to relocate to San Diego. With the "San Diego" decision, there has been a fairly quick brain drain and a loss of many key engineers. So the working environment has deteriorated to the point where morale is very low, and I think most people in San Ramon at least, are trying to find greener pastures.

Advice to Senior Management

Despite what you communicate, it really doesn't seem like you value your employees too much. The fact that you are willing to lose so many engineers shows that management is a little out of touch.

Pros

Anyone that is left, still has a sence of ownership and a sence of pride because they helped build the company up over the past 25 years.

Cons

Management takes a Body Shop approach to running the business. Lack of professional leadership like at ADP. Management shuffles left and right. Capital has been slowly pulled out of the core business and walked out the back door. Will sell and fire everyone if it means meeting a short term goal and to appear profitable. Stripping operating income is the only way to show profits and the revenue growth is flat. There seems to be no emphasis on the associate and relationships with clients. Zero strategic planning other than reach a goal of 1 Billion in revenue with no vision or communication of how to do it except to pull capital, ruin careers and tear apart familys. Six Sigma works great for a manufacturing company but not for a service company. This approach has stripped talent and has destroyed quality and end user satisfaction. I had higher expectations when Solera and it's leadership came on board but have been completely underwhelmed by what they have done to what was once a great place to work.

Advice to Senior Management

Sell us now so there is still something left to rebuild

Pros

Company has an entrenched position in the insurance industry which historically does very well in recessionary periods; in other words Solera is a "safe port in the storm". In general company is fairly flexible with work hours for its back-office employees. Benefits are average to sub-par.

Cons

Management in general does not value its employees nor does it make any real attempt to do so (sorry, "popcorn Wednesdays" doesn't cut it...) Bottom-line cost-cutting trumps any attempt at employee retention or growth. Strong emphasis is given continuously to the "company values" (typical six sigma) but the platitudes ring hollow when it's so obvious that the employee/employer relationship is a one-way street which has everything to do about the company hitting it's quarterly numbers and nothing to do about anything else (including your life/sanity).

Advice to Senior Management

Assuming you're actually trying to add value, think more long-term than the next quarter. Realize that by investing in your primary assets, your employees, that you will not only hit your short-term goals but likely your long-term ones as well...

Pros

The division I worked at has an interesting product and a devoted customer base.

Cons

Upper management doesn't have a clue about the companies they bought to put this holding company together. In fact, upper management doesn't have a clue about running any company. Employee morale is in the toilet, yet when an employee satisfaction survey was taken, corporate management essentially said "tough sh*t"-- don't let the door hit you on the way out." Corporate has an undue fascination with management theories-- the kind that you find on the newsstand right next to the "diet of the week" books. There is no organization chart, and Aquila thinks that not having one promotes cross-training and employee development. It's tough being in a place where the "Founder, Chairman and CEO" is so universally despised.

Advice to Senior Management

Go away. Go drive your goddamned Lamborghini and hire someone who a.) actually knows how to run a company; b.) is more interested in boosting the company than his own ego, and c.) has something other than the personality of a used car salesman.