SRAM Reviews

Pros

Laid back environment where everybody is trusted to do their job without micro-management.

Cons

Not many options for progression in some positions.

Pros

-Passionate people -Casual dress code -Cool products

Cons

-Pay is significantly below market -Limited training and development opportunities -No upward growth -Extremely low department budgets -Ridged/inconsistent work policy based on department -Lack of diversity -HR department is disconnected from the rest of the organization -Benefits are mediocre at best -Outdated vacation policy -Change is strongly resisted throughout the organization

Pros

A very structured and consistent environment with lots of support.

Cons

Slow moving and very corporate feel for the cycling industry.

Advice to Management

Don't forget the roots of the company

Pros

Laid back culture, shorts and tee shirts, 2 hour lunches to ride bikes, fun happy hours, and they make cool products

Cons

Consistently pay below market. If you're not a bike junkie you can get treated differently, they are very seniority oriented - for advancement and input. Change is painful and strongly resisted.

Pros

Amazing people, fun projects, and great work/life balance

Cons

compensation may be on the lower end

Pros

Great culture, energetic work environment. especially if you like bikes.

Cons

A fairly flat organization, self-driven improve yourself.

Pros

SRAM has excellent leadership, excellent perks, and excellent benefits. Our culture is fantastic, flexible, and bike centric. Lastly, the organization really seems to care about the individual, listens to how people feel, and does its best to make adjustments.

Cons

Our vacation policy is lacking compared to what I'm used to. The number of hours per year is small, and the number of hours that employees can accrue and hold year-to-year is also very limited. Our diversity is limited, with an extremely high male population. I don't feel that this is the result of cultural influence, and it is something the organization is currently trying to remedy. Also, for such a forward... thinking organization in an industry dominated by men, we have a very limited paternity leave policy. It is becoming more and more difficult for families to have children, and our paternity leave policy is minimal.

Advice to Management

Improving the paternity leave policy and extending the number of PTO hours we can bank are the two major wishes I have as an employee.

Pros

- Excellent culture. It can be very stressful, but employees and managers do not carry that stress with them off hours. - Employees are given a lot of decision freedom and responsibility within a framework. - Managers steer from the front, not the back -- they say what direction to move in and help guide the execution, not stand back and point out what should have been done. More emphasis on doing than reporting... what was done or what will be done. - Work hard, play hard mentality is shared throughout most of the company. - Passionate coworkers. - Approachable senior management. And senior management seems to put a lot of weight on employee feedback. - Many managers allow flexible hours and understand there are life demands outside of work. The quality and timeliness of your work matters more than the hours you are at your desk. - Open and visible company performance and future goals. - Outdoor industry discounts. - The possibility of a substantial bonus. - Once hired, people rarely choose to leave, which is a positive indicator of the culture and work. - Employees are generally treated as valuable, individual resources, not disposable commodities. Even though I left SRAM just prior to the annual bonus payout, SRAM paid my bonus. They even acknowledged that I was no longer an employee but said I had earned my bonus and was deserving if it. I feel that is a good indicator of how SRAM treats their employees.

Cons

- Base pay is below average, but that is true for most of the bicycle industry. - Health insurance plans are relatively expensive for families. - A bonus is not guaranteed, and if company performance is poor, there will be no bonus, regardless of your personal performance. A little too much emphasis is put on the bonus when hiring and it is paid too inconsistently for the attention it is given. However, layoffs... are rare. - There are sometimes substantial inconsistencies in how business is conducted from one location to another. - Managers and employees sometimes willingly choose not to follow a process or direction with no repercussion for doing so. - People in all roles are empowered to make decisions... which can sometimes result in bad decisions. - As the company size grows and employee longevity increases, turf wars are starting to emerge.

Advice to Management

Continue to support employees and believe in their capabilities. You have successfully built a culture where there is a reasonable amount of freedom for each employee to make decisions without introducing chaos; don't lost that. Turf claiming, "not my job" statements, and settling-in to a role and producing minimum output is becoming more common as the employee base grows. Fighting that is going to be challenging... but necessary because those mentalities are contagious, disruptive, and toxic to the great culture.