Fleshlight Reviews

Pros

Interactive Life Forms, LLC (better known as "Fleshlight" after the flagship product) is an innovative and exciting place to work, where I spent the last 17.5 years. ILF, LLC has maintained its position as industry leader even after the expiration of protective patents due to the creative diligence of its workers up and down the chain. The company is family-owned with Steve Sr. as CEO and Steve Jr. as director of research and development. This dynamic inventor duo constantly works to deliver new and exciting products while improving manufacturing processes and methodologies along the way. As part of the team, your job is to utilize your skills help realize the vision of the CEO, interact with the highly skilled team headed by the director of R&D, and in the process grow profitability. The environment is fast paced with long hours, but in a word ,"fun"; the product is fun (and funny), there is a high level of respect between co-workers which allows ideas to flow freely in the interest of continued successful product releases and increased profitability. The offices are adorned with amazing décor curated by Mrs. Shubin from her own personal collection, which makes one feel as though they are working in an art gallery or gorgeous museum versus a typical office space. Another perk is the on-sight café serving a plethora of food and snack options to keep your fuel up during long work sessions. All equipment is state of the art with support of Mac, Windows, and Linux desktops and servers. There's never a moment that an employee can't do their job due to old, outdated, or malfunctioning desktop equipment. In that same vein, the Shubins spare no expense when it comes to investing in research and development and the machinery required to move the company forward; everyone has the best tools available for success. ILF has 6 offices and satellite teams around the world, located in 5 countries. ILF does business in English (primarily) and Spanish, with its main ecommerce store translated into 6 or more major languages. Compensation is exceedingly competitive if you provide value and growth. Putting in the work will not be unnoticed and in turn is rewarded.

Cons

The subject matter. ILF invented and makes Fleshlights. For some, that may not fit in their personal social circles. It's something to consider. Long work hours. Some potential employees may be used to less aggressive deadlines and may struggle to get used to that at first. Small team. "It's on you..." For the revenue and reach that ILF, LLC has acquired over the years, it's done so with a small, dedicated, and skilled team. What that means is that you're assignments are yours and your success is based on your ability to deliver results on your own. There is collaboration, but much of the heavy lifting you do yourself. Pace. It's fast paced and if one inherits a sense of ownership and excitement, it doesn't feel like work. However, if ILF is just a job, then that pace can be jarring. Make something that works. The owners are tactile folks. They need to see and touch a thing as opposed to reading 10 page technical proposals (tldr; is a real thing at ILF). Some may not appreciate having to take things as far as they need to, to get project approval. The flip side is that you better flesh out your proposal and can more confidently present your ideas to C-Levels and R&D.

Pros

nice place to exist sometimes

Cons

cool to not have hallways

Pros

Funny stories to tell the kids

Cons

Management does not respect you

Pros

Cool products, rewarding work, sense of purpose, excellent employee discounts.

Cons

Can get kind of messy when quality checking products, but no big deal just goes along with the territory.

Pros

Very good compensation both in salary & benefits. Fun, politically incorrect work environment that feels more like a boys club than a job. An environment where "NSFW" (not safe for work) websites are things like google news, porn browsing on breaks is almost encouraged.

Cons

Utter and total lack of management with more between their ears than pocket lint. Management changes occur for no reason and are almost always a total disaster. For example, the director of marketing was fired and then replaced with a girl who does makeup for photo shoots. A director of marketing at a multi million dollar company who's only credentials are "does makeup". Mind blowing. In addition, there is an almost constant cloud of fear in the air. You can and will be fired for no reason whatsoever. You could generate millions of dollars for the company through your efforts and you will still be fired for no reason whatsoever. Bottom line is that if the product did not sell itself, this company would have gone under years ago.

Pros

Really fantastic products and you get an amazing discount

Cons

The CEO is part of a religious group call The Master Angels. I think it's fair to describe them as a cult since they center around a charismatic leader named Master John Douglas who claims he can cure cancer, lyme disease, etc. He hosts $250 seminars and sells supplements, DVDs and healing jewelry online. This is relevant because 2 weeks after I was hired, my boss the CTO, one of the smartest and most decorated engineers I have ever worked with, was fired and replaced by a high priestess of the Master Angels. This woman had convinced the CEO (fraudulently) that she was capable of contacting angels in heaven via the power of crystals and that they could help her make perfect business decisions. I am not even joking. If you decide to take a job at ILF there are a few things you should know: - Your opinion does not matter. - The CEO is extremely volatile. - You can get "terminated" for any reason or no reason at all. - 20%-ish of the employees are the CEO's direct family members. - Most of the management belongs to the crystal angel cult. - Smart people are not welcome because they are a threat to the divine.

Pros

It was generally a relaxed atmosphere, though given the industry, that was to be expected. The CEO was seen, and engaged with staff almost daily (unless he was away on trips). Humor was a big part of the culture. There was an end of the year bonus for most employees in the form of gift cards. Benefits were standard. The warehouse was climate controlled.

Cons

It is a family run business, with sons and daughter(s) involved. If one out shined them in documented performance, and/or offers constructive criticism, it was disregarded. And those normally praised actions could find you unemployed (this happened to quite a number of employees). Pay was not in line with performance or experience, while the CEO flaunted his wealth. There was a general disregard of industry peers and customers by the family (though that was getting slightly better). Given the industry, it proved difficult at times dealing with customers and their product dissatisfaction.

Pros

A few of the people I got to work with were really great people.

Cons

Everything else. As others have stated, this company would have been gone long ago if the product didn't sell itself. The management and their children and their cronies suffer from a lethal combination of ignorance and arrogance. Every single day is filled with lies, firings, half-truths, and hardships. Decisions are made on a whim and rarely make any sense. People are on-edge all day everyday, not knowing if they are still going to have a job that afternoon; I probably saw 20-25 people fired in the 10 months I was there, almost all of them with very little cause. As a result, no one at the company enjoys being there. It is a cesspool that is now nothing more than a hobby for a bored CEO & his family; they don't have any friends outside the company anymore, so it exists solely to feed their egos at this point.

Pros

The salaries are great. Insurance is decent and we have access to a great gym in the building. Co-workers are good people to work with and all very smart and competent. Politically incorrect and laid-back atmosphere but we work hard.

Cons

No promotion path. No set vacation time. No set sick/personal days. Asking for time off is generally frowned upon. Nepotism is rampant. Management changes can occur on a whim and often are disasters. Lack of cohesive planning. Very politically incorrect work environment, some of this is due to the nature of the business and is not necessarily unwelcome but may be a downside to some people.

Pros

Makes for a great story at the bar. People really get a kick out of that.

Cons

Private company constantly at the whims of a bored and ridiculously wealthy CEO who does not understand how modern companies function and operate. CEO hires under-qualified consultants and overpays them to meddle in the company and further cause chaos and discord. No system for tracking employee performance or lack thereof. You can be the best employee and still get fired for no real reason. Or the worst and get away with a lot before anyone notices. Habitually fires large groups of people. Sometimes with good reason and sometimes for no reason at all. High levels of anxiety because there is no executive in place running the company smoothly. Lots of turnover in several parts of the company. Weird segregation between the manufacturing side of the building and the office side. Huge disparity in compensation. Ridiculous salaries for executive level consultants who do very little to no work and very low pay for full-time, salaried employees.