There's a reason for everything... - Anonymous employee Otava Employee Review

- If you expect to have a work-life balance, forget about it. The company's executives will tell you that they cannot "afford" comp time, and they are so understaffed that they will ask volunteers to work double shifts to cover 2nd and 3rd shifts without allowing comp time to recover mentally. This is a mental health issue. They'll give you a spot bonus for it, but don't expect them to allow you to recover mentally. That's what the weekend is for. This should be your first red flag. A company that is willing to overwork its employees to the point of exhaustion is a potential law-suit waiting in the wings. - The current CEO needs to step down. He's narcissistic, and doesn't motivate anyone, except to leave this organization. There are others within the executive team that would lead the company in a better direction. You will notice a trend from 2018 on, that the ratings are slowly in a downward turn. This is because after 2017 when the old CEO stepped down, the new one stepped in, got rid of the management team, and instead of replacing them, he gave himself the direct reports to middle-upper management instead of doing it temporarily and then making finding replacements a top priority. This is a disaster that was waiting to happen. Doesn't understand how to manage an infrastructure MSP. The problem is, is that he doesn't create a safe environment for you to bring this up to his face. If you don't agree with his vision, you will be run out of town. - There's a close knit aspect for many companies at a more molecular level, that are X times larger than Otava. This has gone to the wayside. Teams no longer work well together, and there's a lot of finger pointing. It stems from the top down, so this could be fixed with better leadership. - They do not know how to retain employees, or which employees they should retain. They're trying to go fast with the people they have and they will burn them out and force their hand to go elsewhere. Everyone has a threshold, but it's different for the amount of abuse they're willing to take. They also don't know how to use their talent and will put you in an area where it doesn't make sense. - Pay is laughable. It's an absolute joke. If you're coming here for the money, look elsewhere because you'll make more. Guaranteed. - Culture is built from the ground up, not the other way around where you're forcing it through your messaging. - Security is a major afterthought in this company, and that's a culture issue. Many people look for shortcuts to do their job, and they look at easy solutions to go to market, versus making the tough decisions to get things done the right way. - They also don't do their due dilligence with understanding a product before taking it to market and there have been several products that have been absolute dumpster fires that support then has to manage and operate. All while being understaffed, overworked, underpaid, and underprivileged.