Pros
HealthStream is a fantistic place to work! Without question, it is the best place I've been employed in my career. The culture is very entrepreneurial, hard-working, and, frankly, just a fun place to get up every morning and spend my day. Throughout the company, you'll find that there is an enormous amout of sincerity, integrity, and "good heartedness"--which is due, of course, to the great people that work at HealthStream. It's very unpretentious--which I love. Everyone works hard--but we also celebrate our successes and, yes, vacations, are encouraged. You should also know that a lot of smart people work at HealthStream--which keeps things stimulating.
Importantly, HealthStream is wildly successful--and that should be important for anyone looking for a job. HealthStream was just named as the 27th best small company in the U.S. by Forbes magazine!..and that's literally out of many thousands of public companies. The CEO is Bobby Frist and he is one smart guy! I don't know a single person here at HealthStream who doesn't have enormous respect for him. He's very passionate about making a difference in healthcare (I've heard people compare him to Steve Jobs--but, believe me, Bobby is much nicer and probably smarter). HealthStream has been the market leader in our space--ever since there has been a HealthStream. About 60% of U.S. hospitals use HealthStream--which is more than double anybody else in our space. As an employee, it been fun to be a part of such a huge success.
It has been my experience that if you work hard, you will be rewarded--and rewarded well. Personally, I'm not the kind of person who likes having someone looking over my shoulder constantly as I work (i.e. micro-managing me). Luckily, HealthStream is the kind of place that makes sure you know what the goals are and then lets you do your job. Since smart, conscientious people work at HealthStream, this approach works well. People are frequently promoted from within the company; there's plenty of opportunity for advancement. Also, interestingly, I know of at least 10 employees that worked at HealthStream--and then left to go to another company--and then came back to HealthStream because they liked HealthStream so much! In short, I feel extremely lucky to have my job. It's a terrific place to work.
Cons
HealthStream is clearly a growing company. I think it's exciting to a part of a growing company--but for some folks, it may not be their cup of tea. If you're comfortable with innovation, change, and---well, growth, HealthStream is a great place to be. I think there are some folks out there that prefer to work at older, larger companies that have relatively more established, structured job boundaries--and there's nothing wrong with that. I've always appreciated the fact that there have been opportunities for me to expand my skills into other areas at HealthStream. It's a really "hands on" kind of place.
