The Closest to a Perfect Job So Far
Pros
[WORK AND COMPENSATION] For having only been involved for a minute amount of time, the pay that this company starts you at is nothing to sneeze at. In addition, you have opportunities to work weekends (at upper management's discretion) for time-and-a-half, which can then either be cashed out or saved for later as PTO for a future date. The work is fairly simple, although it is certainly never a dull moment as some of the projects you see coming through are very different than the last set. [IMPACT] Plastigraphics, while not always having public-facing products, does boast some pretty high-profile clients, some of which give you huge bragging rights the next time you're at your local football game. To be connected with these high profile clients is highly inspiring. [FLEXIBILITY] As a smaller company, Plastigraphics offers you great flexibility so long as you give them ample notice. With weekends that you can work to easily make up for lost time, or by simply coming in early / staying late, communication is key in working around whatever appointments or events you have coming up. [MEANINGFUL WORK] I, personally, have never felt as though I was the bearer of great burdens during my time at this company, and in fact I feel as though everyone takes on equivalent amounts of work resulting in a very fair workspace. [WORKPLACE POLITICS] Some of the nicest, most interesting people can be found working alongside you. Genuinely, I believe all of the people here would give you the shirt off of their back -- within reason, of course. Everyone is very attentive and efficient in their work, creating a very well-oiled machine where everyone respects each other and can get stuff done with minimal fuss. [BENEFITS] While I am still utilizing my parents' benefits, I have been informed that the packages available here are not the best. I cannot speak much on this, though, as obviously I am not using them. What I WILL say though, is that any product you make for personal reasons using the resources available to you here is FREE, so long as you do it on your own time (breaks, after your shift, etc), which is amazing. [GROWTH] While you may be inclined to believe you don't have many options as far as growth within the company, upper management is extremely willing to listen to whatever ideas you have and highly receptive to feedback. As intimidating as it may seem, I would not shy away from offering your two cents or asking for growth opportunities whenever you deem it necessary.
Cons
[SAFETY] For all of the good this company has brought me, my biggest concern is certainly safety. Many aspects of the job are unsafe in various ways, be it chemically, mechanically, and even with radiation. I have heard horror stories of things going wrong far before I showed up here, and not a day goes by where something clearly unsafe doesn't go noticed. [STRUCTURE] For a company that does so much quality work across many disciplines, the employee count is insanely small, meaning there are many times where projects go on hold due to just one person being absent. Additionally, while some digital aspects are above average (file structure and management being one), project and data management takes a huge hit which can cause some hiccups during production. Lastly, while there is an abundance of material at your disposal for any job, some of these jobs only ever come up once in a blue moon, leading to a lot of space being used up. [WORK] While generally the work and compensation here are great, there are flaws -- most notably that the word "no" often does not come up between the supervisors and clientele, resulting in massive swaths of work coming in one week that you barely scrape by in finishing. That said, keep everyone in the loop and by the next week you won't even think about how crazy of a week you just had. [LOCATION] Quite frankly, Woodlawn is not exactly the most exciting place to be. With your standard lunch time, you only really have enough time to go to a fast food place, get your food, and come right back to work. The sole exception to this is probably the local Goodwill, which is by far the largest Goodwill I have ever been in. Definitely check it out if you can. My favorite food options have been Fusabowl and occasionally the Rally's in the next town over.
