Pros
I worked at Niowave for 2-1/2 years. -Potential to learn introductory skills in the manufacturing and engineering industry. -Insight on projects and meetings even if at a low level of employment. -Very interesting field to work with; can feel good getting publicity and attention from the media. -Small company so the potential to advance can happen, but it is done differently than at normal companies. -Engage in the entire processes of developing superconductive particle accelerators: including steps from research, design, fabrication, assembly, and all the way to testing. -You can say "I design superconductive particle accelerators; what do you do?" -If you can work in project management or work into management in a different area you have a potential to make a lot of money and help the business run. -Laid back environment with pretty casual dress code and rules.
Cons
-The entire business is ran by one man, even though it may no appear that way. -Business is ran like a "mom-and-pop" business, even though management will deny it. -There is absolutely no management structure and management runs linear in many areas which leads to terrible drama and problems with communication and authority. -Your day may be destroyed in one meeting depending on the mood of one individual. -Management promises a lot with bonuses, EICP, and potential raises, but it often falls short. -Micromanagement is extremely evident in this company, and none of the upper management will stand up against one man; it is always his way or the highway. -Although you get to work on complex projects, your ideas will often get shot down and you will be belittled. There is not a lot of opportunity to use your brain, and if you do, you are often punished and told you were "overstepping your boundaries". -Management will often target individuals and unfortunately this affects bonuses and reviews every year depending on their opinion of you. -The company has hardly any organizational skills. It is not run like a "large business" should. This leads to many problems and a lot of overtime and then twiddling your thumbs (still on overtime) when all the work is gone. -There is no Human Resources department and the handbook is extremely gray with it's detail. They do this so that they can alter the definitions often to what they want. -The benefits are absolutely terrible. There is a high deductible insurance plan, 401k with no matching (what's the point?), 15 PTO days (piled with sick days), life insurance, bonuses (still makes your take home often low), and EICP (employee incentive compensation plan). -When a winter storm hits in 2014 and the company loses power for two days, the company decides to take away two PTO days from all the employees to pay it back, and they also take away a PTO day every year for the day after Thanksgiving. -6 paid holidays (the lowest possible) -They do not care about your family or your personal life. There is no maternity or paternity leave and no leave of absence. -There is an extreme lack of communication between departments which causes most of the company to be on "mandatory" 45-55 hour work weeks without overtime pay (it is promised to be reimbursed from your bonuses). -Management likes to pick favorites and will even take away projects from individuals to put their favorites on them because they are "worried" they will not work well. This causes the Pygmalion effect on employees and does not give them a chance to prove themselves. -The salaries are often terrible and people's salaries do not correspond with their work or productivity. The only way to get to a decent salary without working there for a long time or going into management is to threaten to quit or tell them you are going to look elsewhere for a job. Some individuals are paid a lot though if they are in certain positions or received counter-offers. Majority of the company is extremely underpaid. -Should you decide to leave the company and professionally put in your two weeks (and tell your new employer you can't work for two weeks), a certain individual may agree to put in your two weeks and then have a bad day the following Monday and send someone to tell you that you are to be gone by the end of the week; then you have to call your new employer and hope that they can work you earlier or you lose a week of pay. During this time, the individual who wanted you to leave early will not talk you or present himself in your exit interview.