Pros
- CEO Tim is an excellent person. He's not your typical snobby executive in a suit, but the kind of guy you want to grab a beer with and talk about life with, and usually will if you ask. He is a truly caring individual and a real example of a "rags to riches" American success story. Everyone learns a lot from him during their time at Delta. - Everyone else at the office is incredibly friendly. You cannot walk down the hallway, even to go to the restroom, without someone waving or greeting you and asking how your day is. - Flexible work schedules. Depending on your position, you may have the option to take a 10-hour 4-day week versus 8-hour 5-day. All you need to do is work this out with your manager. Regardless, managers are sympathetic to life circumstances and if you communicate they will usually accommodate. - Our response to COVID-19 was absolutely perfect and has actually advanced our culture forward. Within less than a week, our company was prepared to take everyone remote, and executed well. In fact, our response actually won an industry award. Delta is now a hybrid office model where most work from home with a portion of the company at the office - the choice is typically yours. - Benefits are fantastic and reasonable in price. 401(k) match is fantastic and I've never seen our fund have a loss. - The company has a strategic plan that is transparently shared with employees so we can align around common goals, no matter our role. I have not seen this level of transparency with other companies I have worked for. The goals are data-driven whenever possible so that numbers can be tied to success factors and not be subjective. - Annual Incentive Bonus is amazing. The company's performance metrics are translated via a formula into a percentage. At the end of the fiscal year, employees receive a lump sum bonus equivalent to this percentage. It is typically 5%, but there have been occasions of 10%. - There is a huge amount of diversity in the company, both visible and invisible. We have had everyone working for us from ex-military firearms instructors to newbies who have never even held a gun before. There are co-workers across the political spectrum and of different ethnicities, age groups, orientations, etc. including in leadership roles. Despite differences, everyone is respectful and knows when to tone down discussions. - There is a relatively low amount of hierarchy at the company, so you will have the opportunity to quickly jump in and lead parts of projects if you are so inclined. - You will work at a widely-respected company that is known for treating its customers well. Seriously, we provide a great service that truly helps save lives.
Cons
- Not necessarily a con, but something to watch out for. Delta looks for specific kinds of people when recruiting, and personality is a huge part of it. Read the Core Values and some articles about the USCCA and Delta Defense before applying. If you disagree with them, or are even bothered by the concept of the phrase "get s*** done" being a core value, or HR saying this during an interview uncensored, turn around. - Base compensation can be a tad low to start. HR does their best to orient starting salaries to market rates, but keep in mind West Bend has a lower cost of living than, say, Milwaukee or Chicago. If you prove yourself though, you will get a merit increase annually - this is part of their "pay for performance" philosophy. - The company is growing fast, per the Core Value of the fast eating the slow. Sometimes this can be too overwhelming and lead to mistakes, and I wish managers would take more time to just step back, take a breath, and look at the big picture and make more robust plans. This could reduce the amount of headaches sometimes associated with working at Delta. - With the fast growth comes growing pains that are typical of a corporation scaling up. There are moments of ambiguity, communication failures, undefined requirements, etc. The best thing to do is to keep communicating. Management seems well aware of this and does their best to alleviate these circumstances, but it still does exist. - There is a relatively low amount of hierarchy at the company, so career advancement is atypical and your title will likely not change for several years. Some people have left for this reason alone. - My little nitpick: I wish employees could be able to book and use the Delta Executive Boardroom when it is not in use. It really is a nice space for collaboration. I could see holding product brainstorming sessions in there.
