Pros
Some of the most passionate, talented, and kind colleagues I've worked with. The healthtech mission attracts good people, and the diversity across the company is a real strength. Within our team there was a genuine no-blame culture where we were comfortable making mistakes and learning from them, which is rare. Early on, the broader culture matched that energy. People wanted to be in the office, socials were well-attended, and there was real excitement. You get genuine agency to make change and wear many hats, which is great for growth. No-meeting Fridays were a genuine effort to protect deep focus time, even if they didn't always hold. Lots of young parents on the team too, which speaks to real flexibility in practice.
Cons
Communication from leadership often lacked the transparency the team repeatedly asked for. Psychological safety declined noticeably over time. People used to ask tough questions openly in all-hands, but that stopped after restructuring. There was a recurring pattern where people took on significantly expanded responsibilities without timely conversations about compensation. I had to push hard for progression discussions, and they didn't always go the way I expected, though I'll credit the experience with teaching me to advocate for myself. Strategically, the company spread itself too thin. A small team was expected to juggle too many priorities, often picking up new initiatives while still firefighting existing ones. Investment in foundations tended to happen reactively, after incidents forced the issue rather than proactively. Hiring was slow, and covering gaps when the team was already stretched meant things inevitably slipped. Despite being a small company, teams often felt siloed, each held to their own goals rather than working toward shared objectives. Even small decisions needed to flow through leadership, which felt at odds with hiring experienced people and trusting their judgment. Over time the culture shifted from somewhere people were genuinely energised to be, to somewhere that increasingly felt draining.