Pros
- 100% covered Health insurance - Friendly co-workers
Cons
I guess the main question you need to ask yourself is, what are you looking for in your job? If you are just looking for a paycheck, to not have to pay for your healthcare, and to work in an agency environment, then this job will be fine for you. You'll also need to be willing to work a lot of hours for your salary, so keep that in mind when negotiating your pay. If you are looking for a job at which you can advance in your overall knowledge and/or your career, then I would say this company is not for you. I was employed at this company for 4 years, and saw an alarming turnover rate. All of the quality developers kept leaving. That should tell you all you need to know, but don't worry, I'll go deeper. They like to play musical chairs with positions for all of the same people, over and over again, while everyone else just stays in the same place. When they do say that you'll see a change, it's basically a fabrication (I know from experience). They tell you what you want to hear to appease you, and not follow through. During my time at the agency I made the determination that they like to bring in interns and hire them, due to the fact they can hire them a lower salary since interns are generally just out of school, and happy to get a job at a "cool agency" that is filled with fun games and ski-ball machines that you'll never get to use (which clearly they can afford to buy instead of giving you a raise). Once these employees get to the point where they want something more, they end up moving on. At this company, you just do not get anything more, whether it be a competitive salary or any sort of training and/or education. During my time employed I received: - Below average pay. They like to compare themselves to the "big agencies" but don't want to pay like them. Then they use the fact they are in NH as an excuse. They'll also bring up the healthcare when you want more money, which is a nice perk indeed, but people still need to make a decent salary. In my opinion, if you want to compare yourself to the major players, then keep your talent and pay like the major players. They're just simply all talk. They'd rather let people go, and then tell you to not bother working that last 2 weeks, because they're too butthurt that you're leaving. Can't even tell you how many people gave their notice and were told to lave that very day. - Zero education or conferences. Any time I wanted to attend a conference it was a big NO. They simply do not want to invest in your personal development, they just want you to work long hours and not have you out of the office, since they need to pack your schedule with work to do within a ridiculously short timeline. And they definitely don't want to pay your conference registration, which just shows they don't care that you grow as a designer/developer. They need that money to drive their Range Rovers and BMWs. - Zero ability to use any of the work you do in your portfolio. If you do, you'll be threatened with legal action. Honestly, if I cannot even show that I worked on these projects, please tell me why I even want to work on them in the first place? Most projects are banks, heathcare related, etc anyway. Not exactly super-exciting. All of the cool clients I had the pleasure of working with no-longer do business with SilverTech. Hmmmm. - No bonuses. Zero performance-based incentives. Sure, they like to do an overnight Christmas party at a hotel, which can be fun, but honestly I'd really just appreciate a check. People have bills to pay. - Unflexible hours. For a salary-based position that works long hours, you would think they'd be a little lenient if you drive 80 miles to get in at 9:05 for their highly unnecessary 9:00 production meeting. I can't even tell you how many times you'll get scolded if you're not there when they start. Granted, they were trying a new time system when I left, but I couldn't tell you if it's still being used.