Pros
Flexibility I can’t express just how amazing the work environment is here at Articulate. Like many organizations, you’re going to hammer down and work hard. But at Articulate, it’s a whole lot easier to achieve a healthy sense of work-life(family) balance. To be transparent, many of us do work core hours (our families are still pretty ensconced in the normal 9-5). But with Articulate, I have the freedom to step out to attend a school event during the middle of the day or to enjoy a long walk on a sunny autumn afternoon if the mood strikes. And that’s because... Autonomy Articulate trusts me to get the job done. I’m given a set of tasks and left to my own devices to make the magic happen. That doesn’t mean that I don’t have set times (such as team meetings) that I must be “present”, or that I don’t actively collaborate with colleagues or my supervisor. But it does mean that I feel empowered to work in my own unique way and, largely, on my own schedule. Culture of Care The best part of working here (for me) is that we sincerely care about the people who use our software. It’s not an act. It’s not something that leadership merely pays lip-service to. We really do care and go the extra mile (or 2 or 3) for the people in our user community. Professional Growth I've learned a crazy amount since I've arrived here. But the key is that you have to be self-directed, secure in who you are, and open to growth. You will receive challenging feedback on your work. You won't always agree with your supervisor, and at times it'll feel like you're being whipsawed as the company quickly pivots in a new direction to take advantage of an opportunity. But the c-levels here are super talented (and genuinely kind) people who you can learn a lot from. You just have to be humble, open your ears and ask a lot of questions.
Cons
Frankly, there isn’t much that I don’t love about working here...but here are some caution areas: Remote work isn’t for everyone. If you love the traditional work environment with the water cooler, grabbing a drink with your coworkers, and swinging by Bob’s cubicle, you might struggle a bit. Some people have left because they end up missing the traditional day-to-day interactions that the physical office space provides. We do have a lot of interaction via Slack, Skype, Zoom, etc. But if you thrive on more immediate social contact, you’ll need to establish that outside the workplace. The customer is the rock star. Articulate is a relatively small company and the org chart is pretty flat. So if your desire is to quickly work your way into the ranks of upper management, Articulate isn’t going to be your jam. Also, I’ve found that the leadership team here really values sincerity, accountability, and authenticity. There’s no tolerance for one-upmanship and political games. Life here is about working collaboratively as a team to support our customers. Can you control yourself? You’ll need to self-moderate. With autonomy and remote work comes the freedom to work 24/7. It’s super easy to log-on since your home is also your office. While it’s NOT an expectation that you work a crazy number of hours, there’s also nobody kicking you out of the building at night. In all honesty, it’s a challenge that many of us struggle with.
