Pros
I’ll start by saying I genuinely enjoy my experience here… so this review is going to skew positive. BetterUp is the first company I’ve worked for that actually walks the talk they put out in the world. The mission isn’t just something you hear during onboarding or briefly mentioned in All Hands and then forgotten, it’s something that runs through your whole experience here. If the mission and the product click for you, this is likely a great place to be. If they don’t, the experience will probably fall flat for you. The people are smart, kind, and passionate. In my experience, you get a ton of autonomy and trust, which makes the consistent drumbeat of change feel less overwhelming and more engaging. You’ve got influence in your day to day and you’re set up to invest yourself into the work where you’ll add the most value. Ownership is big here - raising your hand when you need support or speaking up when you see something - and when you do, there’s someone on the other side who responds. Another thing worth calling out is transparency. If you need information, insight, or reasoning behind decisions, you can get to it without it being gate-kept. That goes a long way in helping you navigate the pace and make smarter decisions, both for yourself and for your area of the business. Lastly, I’ll add that I consider myself a power user of the product. I can genuinely say that my coach has truly changed my life (personally and therefore professionally), and my coaching session is a highlight of my week. When I look at products in the world, I really can’t think of one I connect with more. And I’ve learned that makes a huge difference when you’re investing 40+ hours a week somewhere. The common challenges of working at a startup today (i.e. back to back meeting days, shifting priorities, changing deadlines, etc) all feel much more manageable when you recognize that all of this effort is contributing to getting such a powerful product into the hands of more people.
Cons
The pace of the business is very fast, and priorities shift often. It’s on you to advocate for what you need and sometimes push for the same thing more than once, since everyone is juggling evolving priorities and changes to the business strategy. There are also tons of opportunities to get involved in programs, initiatives, and cross-functional work. On paper that’s a pro, but it can also pull you in too many directions if you’re not clear on your priorities. It takes effort to routinely align with leadership and the business more broadly, otherwise your attention can get fragmented or you build towards something that isn’t relevant to the business. If you’re just on cruise control, the environment will start to feel swirly. This isn’t a place where you can just coast, ownership is expected. You have to raise your hand, speak up, and steer your own role. Without that, it’s easy to feel lost in the constant change.