Pros
Who will succeed here: Zonar is a good place for self-starters, and people that are determined to solve problems, and people that work well in groups. There are opportunities for people of all skill levels. We solve mostly problems that take elbow grease, not necessarily advanced calculus. There is a lot to learn and a lot to know. If you like solving problems, there are no shortage of those. We have good diversity and good values. We're not perfect, but there is a great commitment to evolve for the better. Why is it hard sometimes? The transit industry is tough. There is lots of regulation, lots of competition, and to top it off there's a lot of companies that want to be like Zonar. Right now the company is working to stay ahead of the competition, and learning to focus on the future of the industry, but not leave our existing customers behind. We carry a lot of legacy code while trying to be as agile as a start up. Tech stack: While a lot of tech companies value the ability to solve some esoteric whiteboard task based on tricks or useless knowledge, this is not that kind of place. Are you a good thinker? Are you reasonable to work with? Will you dig in on a problem until you find the solution? Those people succeed here. If you want to be guided on every step, are an alpha geek, or think that your way is the only way, you probably won't last long here. On the flip side there is an enormous amount of room to grow your skills. Learning, improving, studying new tech is valued, and there is a place for refactoring code. I learn new things literally every day. We are working heavily with Google Cloud, machine learning, big data, and distributed systems. There are big problems to solve here if you are game. Management: There is almost no micromanagement or high-pressure culture (in my experience). Sometimes it seems that there are a lot of managers, but thats what you need when you have to keep an old system stable while building new features. Time off opportunities, team building events and freebies (like food) are ample, and there is a full week off for everyone between Christmas and New Year's which is an incredible benefit. The Mission: At the end of the day, you're making kids/busses safer, helping truck drivers get home to their family, and helping the roads be safer. You are part of a huge and essential supply chain that almost every one of us depends on. I grew up in a trucking family, working on rigs on the weekend, and helping out in the office, so I got to see first hand what kinds of issues we solve. At the end of the day, I have a lot of belief in what we do.
Cons
There is no current way to both manage and be an individual contributor, the idea of a "tech lead" could be utilized more. Deadline are mostly unrealistic, but fortunately are often met with a reasonable extension. I think it's more the nature of the industry than the company itself. Customer care deserves more credit for their work.