Pros
I started at Playster with prior experience of both start-ups and long-established companies, and it seemed almost too good to be true – there aren’t many cooler products out there than a subscription service with movies, music, books and games rolled into one, right? Granted, it's ambitious to take on the world's largest companies, but when you see the technology that's already in place and the content partners on board (Sony, Warner, HarperCollins etc) it's impossible not to believe that our app can be cooler than theirs. Goliath, it's on!
There are great career development opportunities here – I was given my first experience of running a small team after just eight months. The company also uses an agile system which allows everyone to play a role in decision-making and gain a better understanding of how everything works right across the business. It gets you out of your comfort zone, ensures there's always some pace and energy with what you're doing, and means you genuinely have a say in how things are done.
The company is very data-driven, and you can see it's important to management that we all have access to stats. This is awesome, particularly if you have a competitive streak, because you can self-evaluate – you always know how well you're doing and what you need to do to improve.
Quarterly reviews and bonuses are a nice perk. Aside from the obvious (that you can make extra money on a quarterly basis rather than annual like a lot of companies), it also keeps you connected with management. You're always getting fresh goals and an opportunity to ask questions or voice any concerns you have.
Culture-wise, it's a modern company with a relaxed dress code, a great office and a 'family' feel. You can nearly always get a group together to hang out after work if you pitch something.
Cons
The data-driven approach I mentioned above means that you might have to change or re-do something based on the results of an experiment. This will be a no-brainer to some people, but for those who get very attached to their own work it could take some getting used to.
