Pros
Hal Kaplan, owner, is present on a fairly daily basis. He is involved in day to day activities which is a welcome change from most companies. He is at the heart of the company and cares deeply for the employees and the company, in that order. The company is very much family oriented. There is a nice holiday party around Christmas which I really enjoyed.
Cons
The "Barrel Team" basically makes all the decisions, although they rarely consult with the end users or managers on the floor. Middle managers are rarely involved in meetings, decision-making, etc. There are few to no activities done to promote employee engagement which is shameful. The pay scale is years behind the average, longevity and/or education has no value and they don't offer tuition reimbursement so for those wishing to better themselves through seeking degrees need not apply. Your only option is to leave and find a different company that rewards your hard work and dedication. Several "key players" will pass you in the hall and not even acknowledge that you exist. There is a clear disconnect between HR and the employee base. It would take a lot of work to fix that, it's been this way for years but I hope it will happen one day for the benefit of the current employees. It's not until you get out that you can see, for the first time, what all is absent in the environment that should be present to ensure employee engagement and happiness.