Not recommended - Developer Smartt Employee Review

1.0
Dec 28, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Good pay structure Promise of professional development Original CEO is a kind and very professional man Free lunches every once in a while (and they're quite good!) Free coffee

Cons

- New upper management is abusive and unprofessional. They will chastise and publicly humiliate all employees in front of the entire company. This happens regardless of whether it's a Jr. developer, Sr. Developer, IT or middle management. This can happen by singling people out during meetings or sending emails to the entire company that chastise a single person. - All employees are expected to work constant UNPAID overtime. This happens regardless of contract stipulations, and is bad enough that the entire team was often working every weekend and nights. While I understand this can be the norm in this industry, the overtime is unpaid and continued for more than four months. - There is poor communication structure between management, middle management, and the customers. Managers failing to get essential content from clients will be blamed upon the developers and designers. - The entire office runs on "blame" culture, rather than focusing on solutions. - Much of the Sr. team is outsourced, which makes it nearly impossible to get timely responses without getting up at 3am. - Employees get literally yelled at by management - Employees get literally yelled at by management in regards to "company policies" that were never previously communicated with the team. The team was perfectly happy to adhere to the new policy, however management was more concerned with insulting multiple team members. - Management will pit employees against each other by blaming one party for another's minor mistakes. It is a very toxic environment. -Poor job stability -- Most of the team was let go and forced to work only on a contract basis as the company lost too many clients due to their mismanagement. I suggest you either completely avoid working for this company in the future, or ensure that your contract explicitly states your hours and overtime availability.

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Smartt Response
8y
Hi, Thanks for leaving your thoughts. I'm sorry that your time at Smartt was filled with so many challenging experiences that you felt you had no opportunity to express your concerns and only brought them to light after you left. If these issues had been raised to me directly, or the person you were reporting to, I am 100% certain that we would have worked through each point with you and addressed them. Some of the events you refer to (such as a part of the team being let go) is accurate and was unfortunately unavoidable. Doing business has some risks associated with it and sometimes the result isn't what we expect and so we have to make hard choices. We were open and transparent about the reasons and for the most part, the team understood and was appreciative of the proactive communication - we even had a "Goodbye Event" at a local restaurant which I know everyone attended - including you - and some, even came back for our annual holiday party as alumni - which I guess, you wouldn't have). Although it has been over a year since you left your review (and over 18 months since the events you describe) I'd be happy to chat with you if you like. Our business thrives on the relationships we build, the memories we create and the results we deliver. If we didn't do a good enough job in either of those, I'd like an opportunity to make it right. I hope you reach out, thanks!

Explore other reviews about Smartt

5.0
Feb 28, 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
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Pros

- Ample opportunities to do technical work and grow in fields that interest you, from low-level networking and storage to developing automation and web applications, and the points between. - Team members never have to be alone. They are supported by their fellow team members and by leadership. - Always evolving. Team members can drive change to improve the organization. - Leadership supports team member growth and career development, even if that leads team members to other organizations. - Inclusive and professional work environment.

Cons

- Team members, especially those in technical positions, have to be careful to maintain their work-life balance and avoid overcommitment. Our leadership will not deliberately overburden team members but they rely on team members to proactively tell them if they cannot take on requested commitments. - Some team members will have on-call responsibilities.

5.0
Aug 25, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Excellent team comraderies - All team members are encouraged and empowered to suggest, initiate, and act to improve not only business practices, but themselves as well.

Cons

- Team members are challenged regularly to reach beyond their normal limits - this is not a company for static skillsets.

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