Good company but stuck in some ways stuck in the start mentality - Analyst Gopher Sport Employee Review

3.0
Feb 6, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

IT manager - One of the best managers I have worker for. IT Team - Overall a good group of people Coo - Great guy easy to talk to CEO - Todd is a good man who cares about his employees despite some of the decisions being made

Cons

- No separation from business and friendship. A lot of friends and relatives work there so I can see why some people leaving reviews say managers play favorites even though I did not experience this myself. Work is work and business is business. There needs to be a line between the two. There is a reason large corporations don't allow spouses and personal relationships (family and sometimes friends to work in the same department). - Customer Service has to much power. Not everything is about the customer experience especially when it hinders internal applications and makes things harder (it looks like this is starting to change) - Company makes a lot of money and yet they still refuse to invest internally in data. Paying Contractors 160-200+ dollars an hour when there is easily 16 months worth of data work of the road map is a gross waste of resources. Gopher should easily have a data team consisting of at least two people. - Benefits are just ok - No exit interview with anyone in leadership outside of my manager which is disapointing.

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Gopher Sport Response
1y
Gopher Sport thanks you for this thoughtful response. We take all suggestions and critiques under consideration as part of our continuous improvement on the Team Member experience and engagement. We wish you the best in your future roles.

Explore other reviews about Gopher Sport

5.0
May 16, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Fun company, with good office atmosphere. Focused on employee growth

Cons

The lack of autonomy allowed for a good amount of micromanagement.

1.0
May 26, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The people are the best part of this company hands down excluding some. Many employees genuinely care about each other, work incredibly hard, and do their best to create a positive environment despite leadership challenges. There is flexibility in some departments, which can be valuable depending on your role. The CREW team deserves recognition for trying to maintain morale and employee engagement, often while working with limited budgets and constraints outside of their control.

Cons

This company was once family-oriented, employee-focused, and a place where long-term careers could be built. Unfortunately, over the past several years, that culture has changed significantly. Insurance goes up every year making it literally impossible to afford life in general because you are trying to be the keeper for your families health. Senior leadership appears heavily focused on metrics and financial performance at the expense of employee development, innovation, and retention. Internal growth opportunities are limited, and capable employees are frequently overlooked for advancement. Employees with strong ideas, initiative, or constructive feedback often feel unheard rather than empowered. Upper leadership has created an environment that feels disconnected from the day-to-day reality of employees. Decision-making often appears top-down, with little openness to feedback or collaboration. There is a strong perception that leadership believes they already have all the answers rather than valuing the experience and insight of the people doing the work. If you are a puppet this is a company for you. A particularly concerning observation has been the apparent lack of female representation in leadership after several women in management roles left or were let go, with those roles subsequently being filled by men. From an employee perspective, this has raised serious concerns about equity, advancement opportunities, and leadership culture. If you're looking for a place with meaningful career growth, transparent leadership, and a culture where employees feel valued beyond their output, this may not be the environment you expect.

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Gopher Sport Response
1mo
Thank you for your thoughtful opinions regarding your employment at Gopher Sport and we’re sorry that you departed with a negative experience. Medical insurance premiums is a challenge for all employers in the U.S. and Minnesota. The average increase in Minnesota was as high as 22%. Gopher Sport’s average increase across our options was 13%. Gopher Sport’s HR and Finance teams work closely with our partner brokers to provide the best value possible for our Team Members in our applicable market and are confident in our 2026 offerings. Regarding Career Paths and development, nearly every hourly and salaried individual contributor role has an assigned career path and is documented to all People Leaders in the Gopher Sport Intranet/SharePoint site. Gopher Sport is a privately held for-profit company which strives to maximize our value to both external and internal stakeholders. Part of the Executive and Senior Management’s responsibilities are to ensure strong financial performance for our customers and internal team members. Again, thank you for your many years of employment. We value each of these responses and wish you the best in your future employment.
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