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      Ad Hoc (DC)

      Engaged employer

      Ad Hoc (DC) Reviews

      3.2

      48% would recommend to a friend

      (151 total reviews)

      Greg Gershman

      61% approve of CEO

      38% positive business outlook

      Ad Hoc (DC) has an employee rating of 3.2 out of 5 stars, based on 151 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Ad Hoc (DC) employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Information Technology industry (3.9 stars).

      Reviews by job title

      151 reviews
      2.0
      1 July 2020

      Some roles less good than others

      Software engineer
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business outlook

      Pros

      Depending on the project, ability to make a very positive impact. Many, many kind and caring colleagues. Lots of people join this company because they want to improve government digital services. Great opportunity to work with people from different parts of the country. Most states are represented here! Wide range of backgrounds in terms of education, industry, and experience. Most roles able to work remotely and across US timezones, and that has always been the policy.

      Cons

      Run as a services vendor vs. a product company. If the customer is happy, management usually doesn't care whether a product was actually delivered. Historically, lots of dismissal of HR-type issues by engineering managers, who don't tend to take issues around inclusion seriously. "Problem" employees can work here for years, and engineering management usually dismisses it as "not that big a deal." Also entirely normal for engineering managers to cancel 1:1s for months at a time because they are working on bizdev. Quality of existing project commitments (and of career growth) often suffers due to the company chasing down new contracts. Very good odds you will end up working with someone from a subcontractor or prime contractor who does not take basic professionalism (or human decency) seriously. Lots of HR-type problems from "coworkers" who actually work for other companies, which means you have no recourse if they say or do something inappropriate. Very variable experiences across projects, though. Entirely possible you'll land on a good one and have a decent experience! Also possible you will dread logging in for work everyday. Also: while it seems to have gotten better as the company has grown, have heard about $50k differences in salary for some people performing the same role, not attributable to experience, business impact, or even geographical location.

      avatar
      Ad Hoc (DC) Response
      5y
      Thank you for this feedback- this information is crucial for our People Operations teams to hear. As outlined in our Handbook, and as outlined on The Hub, there are multiple ways to share your concerns, beyond escalating to your leadership: 1. You can complete an Employee Concern Form (see the Hub for our internal link) 2. Email hr@adhocteam.us 3. Or contact People Operations leadership directly; Toshika Edwards, HR Manager People Operations will keep concerns confidential to the extent possible for a full and thorough investigation. You are protected from retaliation per our zero tolerance policy. If you have escalated your concern to your managers, and you are not seeing action, please avail yourself of these other methods so that Ad Hoc can help support the issues you're seeing- even if the challenge is with a partner company. Pay Equity, Manager Training, and partner selection criteria are all areas in which we've made significant investments this year, as we work to ensure our infrastructure scales to support the exponential growth we've experienced in the last few years. We hope you'll see continued improvement in these areas as we deliver on our plans. We share your feeling that our team is full of kind, caring, mission-driven professionals and we are committed to providing a safe and productive environment for everyone. Please reach out to People Operations at your nearest convenience regarding your other concerns so we can review and take appropriate action immediately. Thank you, Priscilla McMahon VP, People Operations
      3.0
      14 Sept 2023

      No Longer a Startup and No Longer Magical: The Tale of Lost Innovation

      Engineer
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business outlook

      Pros

      Once upon a time in Washington DC, there was a special startup. Its founders believed that mixing engineering know-how with good management could lead to great innovation. This startup stood out because it valued input from engineers in every decision. In the early days, things worked brilliantly. Project managers, with their engineering backgrounds, understood the technical details. They didn't just set deadlines and budgets; they got hands-on and talked tech with engineers. Their goal was to make things simple and innovate for the people's benefit. Success followed. They tackled problems creatively, streamlined processes, and made products that improved lives. Top engineering talent from various backgrounds flocked to join.

      Cons

      However, as the company grew, things changed. Founders stepped back and were replaced by professional managers more focused on their job security and their place within the hierarchy. Promotions favored business-minded or diverse good-looking folks over long-standing engineers. Decision-making became bureaucratic, filled with red tape. Engineers had less say. Exit interviews for engineers leaving, once valuable, disappeared. Peer reviews, once a way to nurture talent, faded. Social gatherings, where engineers and managers used to bond over shared passion and innovation, diminished. The gap between engineers and managers grew, and the company that had once smashed bureaucracy became one itself. It was a sad change. Engineers missed being part of decisions, and their expertise wasn't as valued as before. The startup that aimed to revolutionize by promoting engineers in management roles became a bureaucracy, stifling innovation.

      4.0
      29 Nov 2023

      Great culture getting shredded by govcon realities

      Employee
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business outlook

      Pros

      Great people, mission-driven org, important work. By far the most empathetic people I've worked with, who are generally at Ad Hoc despite being able to make more money elsewhere because they believe in the work being done. The focus on capacity-building in government is great. Engineering culture brings modern practices into legacy places, design and research are actually teaching government agencies how to do user research, showing the value of product thinking over scrum process changes clients. Greg is an authentic leader whose optimism and emotion permeate the company. His energy is so much of what makes Ad Hoc the place it is.

      Cons

      The realities of being a growing government contractor are tough: Ad Hoc long ago left the small-business kiddie pool and hasn't gotten on their feet as a large business. Trying to compete against the bigs keeps squeezing the company's margins in ways that have led to a steady erosion of benefits and culture, not to mention uncertainty in the future of many of Ad Hoc's flagship projects. Because of this squeeze, there's little to no time left for anything outside billable work: no culture-building, knowledge-sharing, building relationships, investing in shared solutions or building internal tools. Benefits that were pretty good when I joined have steadily been declining: continuing ed funds were cut, "unlimited PTO" became "use what you need" became "we're not counting, but if you take more than three weeks we're gonna have a problem", healthcare has declined from "pretty good" to "mediocre and expensive". If you compare to the other DSC companies (peer/competitor companies), Ad Hoc now has some of the worst benefits. I hope the company's able to get through this rough period and land on their feet, but I'm not sure how they get there.

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      ReviewsAd Hoc (DC) reviews

      Glassdoor has 159 Ad Hoc (DC) reviews submitted anonymously by Ad Hoc (DC) employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Ad Hoc (DC) is right for you.