Pros
Downtown Oakland - easy commute options Full benefits
Cons
There is little efficiency, accountability, unbiased leadership, or culture in this company. From the day I started, I felt unwelcomed and when I announced my resignation I was surprised at how many coworkers sought me out to commiserate. Then again, I guess there’s a good reason there aren’t any good reviews here (even after one of the founders asked staff to counter the one [negative] review so far). The turnover rate is the highest of any company I’ve ever worked at in over 15 years. If anyone is considering employment here, management should be asked directly about this and what they are actively doing to address it. STS doesn’t give staff the tools they’ll need to know they’re doing the job right (training and mentorship, hardware setup for their arrival, ongoing IT/software support, professional goals and progress markers). While I’ve heard this is a “hands off” approach to let staff figure out how best to do their work, it’s so hands off that many don’t know what to do, how to do it, or who to go to for help. There is no chain of command clearly defined and scope creep/conflict of interest has made it difficult for anyone to figure out (or feel comfortable asking) because managers are often over-worked and under-trained in how to lead others. Many staff feel disconnected from the company because there is no communication about anything good, bad, or otherwise from management; concerns and potential solutions brought to them are often met with “It’s nothing I can change” or “That’s just how it is”. To echo another review, the wife of one of the founders also works here and generally makes staff miserable by the way she speaks down to, ignores, and even directly insults employees. No one says anything for fear of retribution by her or her husband. There is no one without a conflict of interest and/or trained for HR or personnel resources to discuss this with, so the best I could do was keep a personal record of my unanswered requests and disrespectful interactions with her. They’ve recently retained consultants to help them assess and scale the company (and hopefully remember that staff needs support and inclusion); but with so many people unhappy, if change is possible at all, it will not be quick and they’ll have to make serious efforts to gain trust and respect of the employees they’ve ignored for so long.