Pros
• Pros for Benefits: Good insurance, a good 401K match, cell phone match up to $50 a month,, The office building amenities like a gym, game room etc., short term disability starting when you start and a learning stipend of $500 a month. Note: the learning stipend is expected to be used to company interest vs personal growth. • I enjoyed working with my peers and felt that they were all very skilled and JDA did monthly team events which I always enjoyed and felt were well done. • Technology is newer and well maintained and they will provide what you need to do your job and IT was super helpful. • They handled the pandemic well and made it feel like a safe space to go into when office days were necessary. • Flexible work schedule and ability to WFH most of the time depending on your position.* See cons below
Cons
• Cons for Benefits: No parental leave, no dependent care FSA, and no paid parking for downtown ($8-18 dollars a day or lowest of $140 a month with a pass). • *The flexible work schedule is a double edged sword, because flexibility is allowed, there is also an expectation for the employee to be flexible in their life in order to get work done. This is often necessary in order to hit tight/and arbitrary deadlines, sometimes even expected while on PTO. • Speaking of PTO - PTO will not be paid out at all (not even at a pro-rated amount for the amount of the year you worked). After putting in your two weeks notice, they may also chose to terminate you before the two weeks is up if you ask to use any of your remaining PTO during that time. • The management of project load and timelines promised to clients are never realistic to start with much less once the rolling effect of multiple projects getting pushed back due to many factors. When push comes to shove, it's the team who actively produces the work who had to stay up late, wake up early, and work over holidays and weekends to “make it happen” and there is never a way to catch up. Strategy, collaboration and experimentation time is never built into the timelines for the creative team in a best case scenario either. • Cliental could be a really good fit or a really bad fit depending on your personal/political views - do your research. • Pay is not competitive at JDA, even within its own subsidiaries of companies. However, advocating for a raise/promotion is looked down upon/shamed, even if the workload has significantly increased or changed to more senior work. • Ultimately this job pushed me to decide that I wanted to switch careers because as a creative I did not feel valued or respected, I often felt that the creative teams expertise was waved off because we were viewed as a “grown up art kids” versus the professionals we are.