28 May 2021

Not the Worst Place I've Worked, but Glad I Got Out

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

They were willing to hire people straight out of college to perform pentesting, where most companies require at least 5 years of relevant knowledge. The Dallas office usually felt like you could do whatever you wanted, since there weren't any seniors or management there. Lots of opportunities to teach coworkers new techniques. Some types of tests can be fun and challenging. Pretty cool social events (for London office only, sadly). Made some good friends who kept in touch after most of us left.

Cons

Despite constantly talking about growth, 0 people were added to the internal/external team in over two years. As can be seen from LinkedIn, total growth has been consistently negative for years while workload increased. Little to no training initiative to speak of or extra compensation for industry certs. C-level management occasionally casually ridiculing employees or sharing details brought in confidence to other team members. Generally inconsistent direction, causing a frequent "defeated" attitude among testers. Testers were either left to sit on their thumbs or in a mad dash to finish as many tests in as short a time as possible - no in-between. While sales have individual workspaces, testers have either open office or shared cubicles. Sign-on and retention bonuses discussed during onboarding never materialized. Similarly, perks and renovations promised to team years earlier never happened. Frequent gossip among testers. Disconnection between teams, departments, and even tester cliques. Next to no vertical movement or promotion opportunity. Don't recall seeing a single promotion on my team. Poor compensation for the field and area. Profit for C-level staff seemed a higher motivation that employees.

Digital Boundary Group Response

Thank you for your feedback. We are sorry that your experience at DBG was not what you had hoped it to be. Over the last four years, we have been steadily growing as an organization and have welcomed 20+ team members during that time. Recently we have advanced some of our employees to a management level to accommodate this company growth and we provide opportunities for our technical team members to advance their skills and certifications through our training reimbursement program to grow and perform tests of a higher level of complexity. Like many businesses, during certain periods in the year, we are busier than we are in other periods of the year. In times where we aren’t as busy, all employees work to advance our technical processes, improve upon their skills, and mentor/learn from other employees. Our employees’ opinions and views are encouraged and appreciated to help us improve and get better. As a result of employee feedback, we have implemented retirement savings plans, enhanced our benefits offering, and are looking forward to getting back on track with our office renovation plans once COVID-19 restrictions are removed. DBG is a close and collegial group and we continue to work on strengthening those professional relationships between teammates, departments, and management. We wish you all the best.

2.0

3 May 2021

Started off ok, went downhill after acquisition.

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Some of the people I worked with were great, however many of them have left since the acquisition. The company does cool social events.

Cons

Profit started being prioritized over people when senior management decided they wanted to sell. Salaries are significantly below market. The CTO openly displayed material by an individual who is "widely associated with promoting hatred and dangerous right-wing propaganda posing an active threat to marginalized groups in Canada."

Digital Boundary Group Response

Thank you for your feedback. We are sorry that you felt your relationship at Digital Boundary Group did not continue to live up to your expectations towards the end of the employment relationship. We are committed to creating an inclusive, collaborative, collegial culture at Digital Boundary Group where everyone’s opinions and views are appreciated and encouraged. Our employees are the most important part of our organization and we know that we have some of the finest and most talented individuals working for us who make the company what it is, a great place to work. The acquisition of the company has enabled us to partner with a large and progressive organization that is a passionate supporter of diverse and inclusive businesses. We are happy to share that we are actively recruiting and have added new roles to the organization to prepare for additional growth and to provide our employees with opportunities for advancement. We wish you all the best.

1.0

8 June 2021

High pressure, low quality, resistant to change, poor ethics for ethical hackers

Security specialist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Many of the employees are very nice and great to work with. The work is quite enjoyable and varied. There are flexible work from home options.

Cons

The pay is substantially less than industry averages. Testers are constantly pressured to complete tests as fast as possible, emphasizing speed over quality. Very few employees are promoted. Employees in leadership roles often have very poor interpersonal skills and can be stressful to work with. They are very picky with new hires, the last external tester that was hired was approximately two years ago. Management is unwilling to listen to suggestions and complaints from employees. During covid lockdown measures employees were pressured to come back to the office, and employees not wearing masks was not taken seriously. Managers discussed confidential employee issues with others. Sections of the employment contract contradict Canadian employment laws. Many employees receive raises at or below the value of inflation. Digital Boundary Group forbids managers from providing references beyond confirming your employment. When illegal actions taken by a team lead were brought to the attention of management they were brushed aside and ignored. Employees are frequently terminated upon giving notice.

Digital Boundary Group Response

Thank you for your feedback. We are sorry that you were not happy with your experience at DBG. As constant learning and growth are very important to our business and our industry, we support our employees’ development through our training reimbursement program where we cover the cost of certification exams or training courses that will help employees progress within their roles. Because of our organizational growth, we have been able to promote from within for a new management level this year, which has been an exciting opportunity as an organization. We have a talented and passionate group of employees and we are committed to providing our clients with the best quality and experience possible. We are selective in our recruitment process but we enjoy speaking to candidates from all levels of experience and for those who are just entering the IT Security Industry we are happy to provide guidance on what to focus on for their professional learning and development. Recently we have welcomed a few great technical employees to the team and we look forward to continuing that growth. During COVID-19 the majority of our workforce has been working from home with only a few team members who are in essential roles, or team members who have requested it, working in our offices. Social distancing and mask guidelines are in place and are enforced. DBG does not condone illegal actions of any kind. We wish you all the best.