Pros
The company pays relatively well and has a good work-life balance. Good work ethics and emphasis on high quality. However, the total compensation package is questionable as they make the employees pay for a big part of the benefits.
Cons
Rain Bird has little loyalty to employees; they were one of the early companies to lay off many employees as soon as Covid-19 hit in March 2020. They lack empathy among top leadership; people who had served loyally to the company were let out in the cold as soon as the leadership anticipated the first signs of decline in profits due to Covid. They did not even spare the employees that had worked at the company for decades. There are very few opportunities for promotion. It has a deep-rooted culture of the old boys club that is difficult to break through, no matter how good you are at your job. It appears that the company culture is especially unfriendly for minorities. The company’s management style seems to follow Jack Welch’s playbook; however, they do a poor job. The reward system seems to be based on employee ratings that are set by individual managers. There appears to be little oversight of the rating system, and it seems that many managers manipulate it to promote their agenda and favorite employees. The lowest rated employees are purged at regular intervals, which has led to a culture of sycophancy and favoritism. The management is stuck in the 1980s and is afraid to move beyond it because of its owner. The senior management is mostly disconnected from middle management and employee issues; they seem focused on pleasing the owner and holding on to their jobs.