Best place to get ahead! - Anonymous employee Gusto Employee Review

5.0
27 Apr 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- Gusto is the type of place where you can make a ton of impact very quickly. People are very open to having others jump in and help on projects, which allows folks to get all kinds of different experiences. There is no one way in which things have to work and people are always looking to make things better and more efficient. - The leadership works hard to make sure that employees know that they are being appreciated. The HR team bends over backwards to provide state of the art benefits programs (including an insane 401k program which includes up to 8% matching, ability to early exercise, no golden handcuffs after 3 years of tenure, reproductive benefits, an awesome maternity/paternity package) and the Golden ticket program, allowing employees to travel abroad on the Company's dime). - I get a lot of autonomy to spearhead initiatives and work at my own pace. Yes, there is A LOT to do - this is a quickly growing start-up and we need to work hard to keep the momentum going. HOWEVER, when I need to be out or take a long vacation, everyone is extremely supportive. I never feel like I have to stay late - I sometimes stay late because I want to. I think that a lot of other people are in the same boat. It's exciting to be working at a place that's building new products and it's ok that we have to work late sometimes to be able to move us forward. That said, most of the office clears out by 6pm, so I'm very confused by the other reviewers saying that they are made to work long hours. - The culture is amazing - everyone is very kind, helpful and intelligent. I'm friends with many of my co-workers and we do things outside of work every week or so. The vibe in the office is very lively and many of the visitors I've brought to the office for lunch or dinner have commented that many people are smiling and there is a noticeable happy energy in the office. - The leadership is very positive and driven. They work hard, but they also set the tone for work-life balance by going abroad for vacations, completely disconnecting from work.

Cons

- We are growing very quickly and that means that sometimes the managers do not have time to mentor and develop their employees. This is a good and a bad thing. It will work perfectly (and is very empowering) for those who can do their own legwork to figure out where they want their career to go. It will not work for those who expect to be spoon-fed or who don't like ambiguity. - While I love the idea of having values such as "do the right thing" or "put people first" (not officially a value, but this phrase is used often), these values are constantly getting misconstrued and I wish that the management should set employee expectations as to the limits of these values.

Explore other reviews about Gusto

5.0
10 June 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Smart and friendly coworkers. Excellent team culture

Cons

Tunnel visions on AI a bit too much

2.0
20 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The product is genuinely good, too bad the same can’t be said for how they treat the people who sell it.

Cons

Leadership talks a big game about people-first culture but the reality doesn’t match. The Chicago office expansion felt like a poorly thought-out experiment, new hires were brought on without a clear long-term commitment, and layoffs came without warning, leaving people blindsided. Crossing a billion dollars in revenue and still cutting employees sends a clear message about where workers rank on the priority list. Remote work flexibility is also a glaring weakness. For a company selling HR software to modern businesses, their internal stance on where employees can work is surprisingly rigid and hypocritical. The “flexibility” messaging is mostly optics. The broader concern is the AI roadmap. The automation push feels less like an innovation strategy and more like a slow wind-down of the workforce. Employees aren’t blind to it, it creates anxiety and erodes trust. The culture of transparency they promote externally is largely a facade internally.

10
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