Pros
Great co-workers- fun and friendly, had a basketball hoop in the parking lot. Very youthful culture. Middle management- very pleasant, approachable people, unfortunately hamstrung by poor communication and disorganized objectives from senior management. Beautiful location-Stowe was a treat, and the 45 minute drive to work every day was very pleasant. Challenging work- I was very interested in LiDAR and some of the novel technologies I was introduced to during my time at URMC. There was a lot of talent and passion crammed into a very small space, and the energy was fantastic.
Cons
Extremely bad management- I'm sure every "former employee" says this, but it's true. A company who's primary resources are electricity and bandwidth should not be located in a rural area. Stowe is also one of the most expensive towns on the East Coast, in property costs and taxes. The company was only there so people could ski during work. Senior management and sales were located in PA, over 300 miles from the production arm of the company. If the CEO wanted to give us a pep talk, he had to get on a plane, fly two hours, drive an hour from the airport, then turn around and head home. Usually he would just talk to us on speakerphone. The company was in bankruptcy in 2008, when they were saved by the New York Blackout (which was caused by a vegetation incursion). All electric utilities in the United States were ordered to survey their lines within three years. From 2009-2012, URMC was swimming in money, but this surplus was so badly managed that within six months of this burst of work ending, 90% of employees had been laid off. I wish there was a way to "Strongly Disapprove" of the CEO. He was the single biggest problem with the company. Location- As I said about, Stowe is very rural. My commute was 45 minutes, which was common for employees. I was interested in making a career at URMC, I liked the people and I enjoyed the work we were doing. Overall, my experience was one of wasted potential.