My favorite place to work ever as far as the people go
Pros
I have been working different jobs for over 30 years, and the absolute best part about this company is the people that work here. If you don't make friends that you stay in touch with after leaving, it's because you didn't want to. These really are good people. It doesn't matter whether you're young or old, the teams here are sincerely dedicated to working together. The work hard and (sometimes) play hard. And if you prefer to work alone and have your space, they accommodate that nicely. You can generally get as much or as little direction from your managers as you feel is necessary, just be sure you do your work. Being in newborn screening, the work of saving babies is obviously one of the most rewarding jobs you can have, and the people here generally take that very seriously. They are very good about having site-wide activities, lunches, happy hours, volunteering, etc... They hire lots of employees that start as interns. This youthful energy is part of what keeps the place from getting stale. Because of the nature of their business, this is also a very stable position; I would honestly be surprised if there was ever a layoff at this site. This is specifically related to the Akron, OH office, as I haven't had a lot of experience with the many people outside of Akron. It is a huge company, so there is also a lot of opportunities outside of the Akron site.
Cons
The existing technology is dated, so if you want to be cutting edge, this probably isn't the place for you. Having said that, they do have new platforms in the works which are a step in the right direction, but the nature of the business (Newborn Screening/working with hospitals & state run labs) dictate to some degree that we can only move as fast as the customers can keep up. Previously I don't think the Akron site had enough say in R&D decision making, I feel like senior leadership at the company makes the decisions and then has the site figure out how to make it work. This may not be unlike any other companies, so it's not unusual but that doesn't mean it's not a 'Con'. I don't think there's quite enough management driven focus on continued education; it's really up to you to make yourself better.
