Growing business with growing pains - Software Developer Modus Group Employee Review

2.0
Jul 4, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good position in the market, and has the potential to become a player in insurance. Good client list. Casual dress code.

Cons

Tiny company trying to push enterprise software with little support and personnel. Company culture is defined the deadlines, extra hours is a requirement.

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Modus Group Response
10y
This falls pretty much within the same timing as the other reviews with the same outlook. Modus went through a period of time (first half of 2015) where our sales opportunities significantly outpaced our scale. As a result of that, development teams were overworked, stress was high, and most of the people working in that group felt under appreciated. It was a genuine problem. Yet, it is a problem that was addressed and we have taken big steps to repair the situation. A lot of that extra workload has been picked up by contractors as we hire direct staff. Ultimately, we want to find direct staff to do all of our development work. However, it takes time to build a team. We are hiring multiple people each month, and that trend will continue through the rest of the year. I am sorry you had such a mediocre experience with Modus. I like to think that we learned a lot from that time. I feel that most of the current people on the development team are pretty happy with their jobs now. Thanks. Brandon Johnson

Explore other reviews about Modus Group

5.0
Dec 10, 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

* Great people. * Organized projects. * Coffee. * Video games. * Talented developers. * Laid back environment.

Cons

Communication with remote teams in different timezones.

2.0
Apr 23, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Modus is located very close to the beach, which makes for some pleasant beach trips either before or after work. It's also right next to a grocery store, so if you every lose your bathroom key, you only have to race across the street and not get hit by a car in order to relieve yourself.

Cons

Modus is not a terrible place to work, but it is far from ideal, and unless you're trying to get your foot in the door, why would you want to work for a mediocre company? In terms of the tasks you work on, it is very disorganized, and work is delegated on an ad hoc basis despite attempts to delegate. Frequently, whatever you are working on will set aside to work on a new "hot fix", which will comprise the bulk of your work. You can also look forward to staying late, and occasionally working on the weekend. Expect to catch some flak for leaving on time every now and then. In terms of culture, this is their weakest point. The office is small, quiet, and there's a strong chance you will work in a cubicle. In my time there, there seemed to be absolutely no interest on the part of management to make Modus an attractive place to work.

10
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Modus Group Response
10y
I appreciate this review. A lot of which was said here was completely true. We were, and are in a phase of some significant growth. We had more customer opportunity than we did developers to create the product needed. This created the mess described in the review. We were chasing our tail, and did not have enough staff to get all of the work done. (hence the long hours). The office was also drab, outdated, and yes, there were cubicles. Here is what changed... In July, we moved into a new office space upstairs. It is about 5X larger than the previous space and was completely remodeled. Developers do not work in cubicles. They mostly work on open tables setup on in pods. However, we have several other spaces people can work. There is a large conference room, and a small conference room. There is a lounge with a couch, comfortable chairs and bean bags. There is a standing desk area. There is also a rec room with more comfortable seating. We encourage people to work wherever they want. This is why we built out all of these spaces. I absolutely did care about creating a better environment, and that is why I made the investment in building out the space. The work hours are under much better control now. We are striving to hire more direct employees, but it is not an easy task for a small company that is located outside of one of the major tech regions. We have more than doubled the size of our development team using both on-shore and off-shore contractors. In the end, we want employees, but the contractors help absorb a lot of the workload making everyone’s life easier. I appreciate the reviewer’s honest assessment of their experience. It helped me make improvements and create a better environment. Brandon Johnson, CEO
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