Preface: After writing this review, I realized that it was War and Peace on the experiences of a grunt programmer at a new company!
So, I will give you the CliffsNotes version first and you can read the whole story if you so choose.
Keyavi Data… Fascinating company to work for and with. Yes, with. I work with great people, brutally intelligent people, and it’s fun. I waited 90 days to write this just to see if the luster would wear off, but it hasn’t and most likely won’t. My ideas are heard, they are appreciated, my opinions are valued, and my sense of humor is enjoyed. I can actually let my hair down and feel at home here. We are building cutting edge technology and being taken seriously by those higher up is a kick in the battery and makes your juices flow. From the CEO down, these are compassionate people, caring people, and fun people and that makes 8 hours in the day go by fast and not really work. This is a company that everyone should aspire to work for. They are not your typical tech employer. They are the atypical company that happens to be in the tech industry and other companies can and should take a page out of their book.
The whole story:
Two simple words that either give you a sense of relief or an overwhelming urge to do a back flip – You’re Hired. For me, it was a back flip.
I don’t usually write reviews partly because my experiences are usually middle of the road: not too bad… not too good.
I do, however, have a reason to write a review on the company that said, “You’re Hired”. Those two simple words and 90 days have caused me to write a review on a company that is genuine. Most companies, for a new hire, tend to lose their luster after about 3 to 4 weeks. So I thought I would wait about 3 months before I made the decision to scream from the rooftops or sulk in the gutter. Ninety days is enough time to get your feet wet with a new position and find out just what the underbelly of the company, the management and the people are like. Granted, sometimes it takes less than that but I gave it 3 months.
So here goes. The interview process involved 5 different people separately and all in one day. Exhausting but fun. Fun in that the conversations were fun, invigorating, intellectual and at times personal. The technical interview was not the worst (I don’t do technical “multiple choice true false what is” interviews well). The technical was actually kind of fun in that there were a couple of “what is…” questions, the rest was talking tech talk and theory as well as what we’ve done and what we like from a coding standpoint.
The other 4 interviews were more conversational as if we were just sitting around talking about what we’ve done, how we did it, what our directions were, and some examples of what I had achieved and worked through (almost like bragging but in a humble way). I will say that after the interviews that were supposed to be 45 minutes each, I was absolutely exhausted and yet felt great. The interviews were more like an hour or a little over due to the ease of conversation with those in the loop.
“You’re Hired”. The next day I was on pins and needles because after the interview process, I got some insight into who these people were and what the company was as well as their product. Remember: I was interviewing them as much as they were interviewing me. My recruiter call and said, “You’re Hired!” with a chuckle. He, Charlie is his name, explained the feedback and what the offer was. That was a great day.
When I started, the first week was the and greets. It was the usual glad handing and learning about what everyone does. But for those I met with, it wasn’t the “usual” conversation. They were genuinely glad to meet me and a great conversation. Over the past 90 days here what I know: Keyavi is a collaborative environment, very team oriented and compassionate group. I work with brilliant people who love what they do and care about those around them. Now, while this may sound “canned”, it’s very much so NOT. I mean every word I say. Like I said, I don’t do reviews. Even before I started, the point person for this ongoing journey (she knows who she is) could be called the “face of the company” and lives up to every expectation. I wasn’t just handed off from the recruiter, I was transitioned to the family. Yeah, family. She made the onboarding process stressless and fun. Today is just as fun as day 1 and a little more exciting. We’re doing things that haven’t been tried before and our ideas, all of us, mean something. It may be a good idea, it may be a great idea, or it may be a bad idea, it doesn’t matter. They want you to speak up and let yourself be heard. Management does not take the credit for achievement. They pass the kudos to those who actually made it happen – that’s where I want to be and who I want to work for and with. I had 2 goals in the journey to find a place to call work home: to be the best decision they ever made and to be happy in a company I could retire from.
I have achieved my goals. Thanks everyone.