Pros
The product is great. The CEO is great. Most of the Engineers are great. No, really, the CEO is great. He is personable, humble, and very intelligent. It was a privilege to work for him, and I would be more than happy to do so in the future.
Cons
The new VP of Engineering. Metrics are a good thing, but they are only as good as the scope they are derived from. I am a firm deliver in using data to make decisions, but when it comes to people, a couple of data points are insufficient. When we brought this new VP on, I decided to do some research... Like I said, metrics have their place. Using Glassdoor and linked in I was able to compile a list of company reviews before, during, and after the afore mentioned VP joined several companies. There is not enough data to make a strong case, however there is enough to suggest a probable coalition between the VP joining the company, and a sharp downward turn in employee moral that lead to a steep increase in churn. Not sure why this was not discovered during the vetting process, it was simple data to get at. I understand the thought behind his actions, but it is a very one dimensional thought. If people were machines... well, it would be much easier, and his approach would be good, but people are not machines, and looking at the spine of a book does not give you the needed information to judge it's content. As for my methodology of research. It is simple enough. Reviews on GlassDoor are dated. It is easy enough to find who the VP of engineering was at the date of this writing. From there, it is simple to find the previous companies he has worked for and the dates of those employments. One can then, simply come back to GlassDoor and look at reviews for those companies, that fall within the date ranges of his employment. Knack is not the first company to suffer, and it is unlikely that we will be the last.