Unprofessional - Anonymous employee Gideon USA Employee Review

2.0
6 Mar 2018
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Competitive salary,and good benefits.

Cons

Company highly unprofessional. Uses words like "badass" , "kickass" and "spongy" to describe itself and expectations from employees. "Prez's" perception about herself is way off. Cherry picks certain principles from lean training without applying all . Dictatorial micromanagement. I.e. Mandatory " voluntary " questionnaires, mandatory non professional phone apps. True professionals with years of experience are chastised for doing routine scope work without management approval. Very little support from office staff and upper management. Mentorship is minimal because the mentors are always "too busy" with meetings. No effective communication, on-boarding is minimal and inconsistent. some employees take 6weeks of vacation while others are only able to take a day or two at a time due to workload and position. Culture of nepotism, cronyism, favoritism and very clique ish.

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Gideon USA Response
8y
Hey, sorry you feel that way. We definitely are different and we love the language that we use to communicate who we are and using Slack as our communication tool is unique and far from unprofessional (and not mandatory). Employee surveys are also not anonymous and not mandatory and we love to have regular feedback on how we are doing. We’ve never once thought that offering the opportunity to participate in a survey would be a negative thing. Regarding Slack, yes it’s a different tool that is used by typically more modern, younger companies, but we have to find evolve and find innovative ways to get people to socialize and communicate since we have people in 5 states and even other countries. Lean is a lifelong journey and we feel that starting with some principles are better then none. It’s a step by step process to implement Lean culture, and it’s not easy. Because we are so spread out, independence and self motivation are key core values and we can’t hand hold like you can when face to face. It’s definitely a constant challenge for everyone, some people love it and thrive, and some don’t. We are a small business that we believe has come a long way in its 13 years and grown a lot in all ways. This is Jade, yes I am the President, and I started this company with nothing but some luck many years ago so I’m super proud of the company and where it is. I am definitely more hands off now that it’s been 13 years and we have great people in place. Some people like the old school way of the CEO being intimately involved in every detail but that’s not how I am and it’s not my job either. It’s evolution and it’s all good. Gideon never claims to be perfect and we are always growing and learning (hence, spongy), so we do thank you for your feedback. We are definitely not your traditional construction company and we are not a fit for everyone. Thank you for the time that you spent with us!

Explore other reviews about Gideon USA

5.0
11 Aug 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

No one micromanages you, no tracking of days or time off, they care about you and your family

Cons

Because no one manages you, they only hire people who are self motivated which is great for the team members who are and bad for those who can’t do their own work without being managed. Those don’t last here.

5.0
17 Oct 2017
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- No micromanaging, people who can't work independently wouldn't do well here. Other reviews say that the owner or managers are out of touch, but it's just that they expect you to do your work without needing babysitters. They are very involved but don't look over your shoulder. Everyone pulls their weight and if they don't, they are probably the ones leaving nasty reviews - don't track vacations or time off, flexibility and goes along with their trust in us to manage our own time with our teams - strong teams, I love my team and the people I deal with from the folks at my base to the ones in the office - good people, just good hard working people. There are sometimes challenges with different personalities but that's everywhere - repeat customers, we do cool work for a handful of repeat clients all around the world - good management, they had their challenges in the past but things seem to be going along pretty smoothly this year

Cons

The company is very specific about the traits that they value, so if you can't work independently or need extra hand holding, this would not be a great fit. Although they do mentoring, there isn't a ton of training. They do provide good health benefits, paying 90% of the employee, a 401K and a flexible PTO policy.

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