Pros
* A great tech stack for the Content Delivery Network - companies whose web applications value instant content updates, and intelligent decision making at the edge are big fans. * The addition of a very strong web application firewall offering via the Signal Sciences acquisition in 2020 addressed a significant capability gap. As that technology moves into Fastly's edge POPs in 2H 2021 into 2022, the overall value prop for Fastly will improve. * A positive and collaborative culture among departments - all are rowing in the same direction and with the customer's success in mind. The Legal team, which tended to be an impediment to Sales at my previous companies, was outstanding at Fastly. * As a Seller, for four years I found the compensation packages to be fair and consistent. Commission payments were always timely. A new commission reporting system was implemented in 2019 and was / is the best I have experienced in 35+ years of enterprise sales. Clear, understandable and with nice drill-down detail. Also the Billing system for invoicing customers is very good. It was so refreshing as a Seller to not have to soothe angry customers who were upset about billing errors, as I did at previous employers. * Company culture was outstanding for Fastly-the-startup 2017 - 2019. It had to evolve with the acquisition of SigSci and infusion of 100+ head count. In 2020 into 2021 equity, diversity and inclusiveness got significant focus, and investment in new head count and programs.
Cons
* Starting in 2019, it became apparent that the Marketing function, especially as it applied to demand generation and PR, was not reflecting the quality of the products and tech stack. Actions were taken to bring in more external hires and Marketing budget was finally able to be funded better, post-IPO. Things improved significantly in 2020 through mid-2021 when I left, but market opportunity was not maximized, and there's still work to do. * The hiring and selection mechanism for senior leadership roles is painfully slow. Granted it is important to find just the right individual, but going several quarters with interim leaders in key positions was not optimal. * The integration of Signal Sciences, especially from a Sales perspective was rushed. The respective product portfolio responsibilities, in retrospect, were collapsed into a single Seller model too soon, resulting in high turnover of the Sales org, especially former SigSci. * If it's possible to have had "too good of a culture" in coping with the pandemic, Fastly might be guilty. Now in 2H 2021 there's the impact of new senior leadership in Sales and lots of mid-level personnel changes in Marketing, the Security practice, and other areas. It remains to be seen how strong of a benefit to revenue will be recognized going into 2022.
