Pros
Employees were all aligned, both short term, and long term, to make the best decisions for shareholders. There were no silos, no bureaucracy; nothing that weighs down a lot of other companies. There were no organizational design or culture issue that stopped employees from innovating, from challenging the “status quo”. We were not the biggest, yet, but we prided ourselves on being the best and strove with every deviation to be better.
Innovation at the company was driven by Toby Rice; who embodies a true leader. He was not afraid to forge a new path forward; to look at issues differently than others.
This is true leadership; seeking excellence at a company, not by doing what has always been done, but rather by continuously looking for ways to improve results. Never settling for “good enough” is what made Rice Energy an exciting, challenging, fun, rewarding place to work. New ideas were rewarded. It was totally acceptable to challenge how things had been done historically as there is no reason to continue to do something that is not in the best interest of shareholders. Continuous improvement was rewarded and ultimately promoted a culture that was second to none.
I had the privilege of being a part of this organization from April 2011 until November 2017 when the transaction closed. It’s going to be impossible to find another culture like Rice Energy and that was because of Danny, Toby & Derek.
Cons
None. A large public company competitor made a compelling offer to purchase the company.