Interesting & Important Work in Clean Transportation - Program Manager Calstart Employee Review

3.0
May 27, 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Openness of ideas with supervisor, and opportunities to explore new projects and initiatives, aligns with core values to improve clean transportation access. HMO-Healthcare included as part of benefits package.

Cons

Day-to-day, the workload is unsustainable. In general, their benefits package is sub-par based on paid parental leave duration, caregiver leave and PTO allocations. Not much transparency in gaining access to some key benefits such as retirement. In general, processes are antiquated with little room for new ideas to streamline processes. The organization is focused on hierarchy and segmentation of departments. Salaries are quite low. Promotions happen infrequently, if at all.

avatar
Calstart Response
5y
Thank you for your review. Your open and transparent approach is helpful. Having doubled in size in less than two years we are admittedly catching up in terms of our benefits and PTO. We have moved the needle a bit but have a way to go! We are rolling out our new leveling guidelines in mere weeks and hope this will demonstrate our focus on fairness and improve the availability of promotions. We are also working toward a more defined and clear org structure that will help with segmentation. We'd love to hear more about the "focus on hierarchy" if you'd like to share more detailed thoughts.

Explore other reviews about Calstart

5.0
Jul 10, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Remote, fast growing, good staff, and lots of variety in work

Cons

Remote and more general consulting than a specific field

3.0
Jan 27, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

CALSTART's mission matters and thanks to dedicated staff, the community of superb members, and powerful connections throughout North America, it is an impactful and purposeful organization. CALSTART has a unique ability to advance the market through its excellent staff and close collaboration with industry through the membership program. Employees are purpose driven and stay there because of their belief in the mission, the great people, and an earnest desire to build a sustainable, zero-emission transportation future. Some of the best people I've met in my career are from my rich days at CALSTART.

Cons

CALSTART is hiring but also has a large number of people leaving. The CEO has been at CALSTART for more than 30 years. The organization needs fresh new ideas at the top.

9
See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All