WillowTree Reviews

Pros

Very supportive, transparent from top to bottom in the org. Lots of opportunities to learn, plenty of flexibility, psychological safety. I couldn't have asked for better place to work - especially during the pandemic. Lots of communication, flexibility. Management bent over backwards to make sure we were prepared to weather this storm successfully. I love this place.

Cons

I'll try to think of one and update the review. I've got no complaints.

Pros

- Brilliant Teammates: WillowTree has done an incredible job of attracting and retaining the best talent I've seen in the industry. My colleagues are some of the smartest and nicest people I've come across and I feel very fortunate to work with them. - Team Autonomy: WillowTree embraces a bottom-up leadership philosophy where teams are empowered with total control over their projects. Leadership's role is much more focused on supporting project teams rather than managing them. This autonomy creates a sense of ownership and pride within the team that can't be replaced. The outcomes are happy teams and happy clients. - Challenging Projects: WillowTree builds mission-critical products for clients and is a premium provider in the space. Clients don't come to us with easy or boring projects. Every project I've worked on here has been challenging for different reasons. Every day, I get to collaborate with really smart people to solve really tough problems. - Investment in Innovation: Since I've joined, WillowTree has made a considerable effort to invest in innovation-related initiatives. I've loved seeing investment in both open-source projects (e.g. Vocable AAC) and innovation partnerships with clients (e.g. Voice) in our Durham office. Our teams are uniquely positioned to innovate, so I hope to see more of this. - Engaged Leadership: The Exec team at WillowTree is fantastic. They're always looking for ways to improve the experience of working at WillowTree. They're always open to feedback. They live our core values every day and lead by example. - Transparent Communication: Open and honest communication is huge here. Positive feedback is echoed across the company with regular shoutouts and kudos coming from every level. Constructive feedback is handled the right way, in private face-to-face 1:1 conversations. As I write this review in April 2020, I've been really impressed with how transparent our leadership team has been about addressing the COVID-19 crisis and its impact to our business. Honest, decisive leadership during this highly uncertain time has been refreshing and reassuring. - Belief in Learning & Development: Everyone at WillowTree has a growth mindset. There's significant investment in delivering high-quality training and learning materials to teams. L&D is viewed as an opportunity here, not a checkbox as I've seen at other organizations. There's a deep understanding that WillowTree has to develop talent and help its employees grow as people in order to thrive as a company.

Cons

- Burnout Happens: Due to the caliber of people we hire and sometimes unrealistic deadlines projects are under, I've seen people overwork themselves trying to meet an impossible target. WillowTree is generally supportive and acknowledges that nobody wants burnout, that it leads to lower quality output and voluntary attrition - all very bad things. My experience in the tech industry has taught me that burnout happens (even at WillowTree) and the most important thing we can do is monitor for it, minimize the chances it happens, and protect teams with support and shelter when it does happen. I'm optimistic that WillowTree's rollout of the new branch structure along with recurring anonymous surveys will help mitigate burnout here in the future. - Growing Pains: Since I've joined, our Durham office has doubled in size, moved to a new (beautiful) office across town, WillowTree has opened a New York office, and we've also added an office in Ohio through a merger. This is a lot of stress to put on an organization and it can be challenging to maintain culture in the face of so much rapid change. I think the branch structure will be a steadying force here. I've come to embrace that parts of working at WillowTree will feel like a roller-coaster ride, but I realize that isn't for everyone. - Allocation Can Be Bumpy: This is a reality in client services. There's always a rush to spin teams up for new projects and the whole process can feel chaotic. The highest performing teams are often the most stable, so it's important we get allocation right. I'm encouraged to see that as we've grown, we continue to decentralize allocation. I think branch leadership teams are well suited to make allocation a smoother process overall.

Pros

- I'm impressed by the leadership team. They communicate clearly. They're transparent. They give shoutouts to those who deserve it. They're willing to admit when they're wrong, and adapt accordingly. They're inspiring. And here's maybe what is most important to me: they are clear that everything they do has a business goal. Even if something they do is deeply human, they don't try and trick you into the dangerous trap of thinking a company is a family. It's a team with a shared purpose — building products people love. - I'm impressed by the people. Folks here are nice human beings, but they also seem to care a lot about pushing themselves in their work. I like this, because my goal in working for a great company is not to make friends (that's what my personal life is for). I'm here to accomplish great things that I could't do on my own. I believe that's possible here. - I'm impressed with the workspace. Normally I qualify office accoutrements as the "sprinkles," but in many cases here it's the "ice cream." What I mean is that the office in Durham supports different work styles, and it's not just trying to be fancy. Open offices aren't great for me, but luckily there are many different places I can get my work done in the office. We have a library that is divine for an introvert who likes quiet, enjoys plants and plenty of sunlight, and appreciates quality interior design. The Charlottesville team has an incredible new office space in the works!

Cons

- It may seem strange to say this, but I think WillowTree has TOO many learning opportunities. There are so many people here hungry to educate, that I often feel like I can't absorb it all. However, this is ultimately a great challenge, and I think they're actively working towards solving this problem. - In a similar vein, it might benefit the team for WillowTree to set the tone early on that saying "no" is OK. Folks are so enthusiastic to jump in that sometimes I think they can bite off too much. - Tech in conference rooms could be more intuitive. I know this seems petty, but with remote calls with clients being so vital, A/V needs to be effortless.

Pros

Excited, engaged, and talented employees Casual and comfortable atmosphere Flexible working hours Transparent and encouraging management Emphasis on employee satisfaction and company culture Inclusive and accessible

Cons

Located in Virginia and North Carolina, which are not always the most accepting places of minorities and marginalized groups.

Pros

Work with some of the brightest minds, while also being really nice people. You come in every day with a sense of belonging and pride working for willow tree.

Cons

Continuous growing pains of rapid growth, but the management continues to do a great job with this.

Pros

- The leadership CARES about each individual and this is proven time and time again. - Free snacks in the office. - Coworkers are seen as friends/family and not just people we have to get through 8 hours a day with. - Everyone is super smart and talented AND quick to help others learn. - Underrepresented groups are free to create/participate in discussions with those in the same group about how WillowTree could better take care of them. Feedback taken to leadership is actually listened to and acted upon. - We always suggest the right way vs the easy way and work to help our clients see the benefits of doing so. - Anyone can raise a concern and is listened to. - No devices in meetings. Also, if your presence won't bring anything to a meeting, you are free to skip it. - Everyone is encouraged to spend at least 4 hours (most people do this in the afternoon) to go heads down and ignore Slack. Everyone else respects this time. - It's made very clear that >40 hour weeks should be the exception and not the norm (though those who WANT to work more are always free to do so). If/when crunchtime does hit, the team is super supportive. - This list goes on and on...

Cons

- I'd love a little more PTO.