Pros
The company is fairly laid back with an open door policy. Upper management means well and genuinely cares about the employees. Life work balance is actually pretty good. If you want a traditional corporate steady job, this the company for you. If you want a long career with opportunity for advancement, please look else where. Overall the strategy of moving from away from a decentralized structure is long overdue. Also, leveraging a global footprint will be a game changer. Eventually they will experience growth but they have a lot of headwinds.
Cons
With a flat organizational structure and a lean mentality, it's difficult to get promotions. Employees are way overworked and busy is an understatement. Unfortunately this contributes to slow response and communication to support the sales teams. Typically, it will take 5 years to get promoted and that's if you are lucky. With a merger that has dragged on for 2+ years, flat and declining sales, the company is not situated for long term success. Management is focused on short term goals to keep the ship float. They are more concerned about surviving next quarter and year than build for long term success. This really drives back to a merger that has not lived up to expectations. Growth goals for EBIT are below industry average and will continue to be there until merger is fully complete. Change is slow due to the aging workforce and not enough employees to manage the workload. Long term, with Amazon and Grainger competing on price and in digital sales, value added services such that Vallen provides will become even more competitive. Vallen could be in for a bumpy ride for years to come.