Pros
SVI has made a big impact on my career. They looked beyond my resume and let my results speak for themselves which helped me on the growth trajectory I am on today. The team puts its money where its mouth is when it comes to improving the various people they touch, regardless of the context and the profession opportunities to tackle projects that grew my abilities and managers who cared about my growth and had deep experience that I learned from. I got to work with clients I never dreamed of meeting before and delivered work that I still look back on as references for myself today. Quick bullets of other things that meant a lot to me: - Diversity in background and thought - No only was the team from around the world (United States, Asia, Europe, and South America), but also came from so many interesting backgrounds. One of our backend engineers was also a Medieval history PhD, another team member created a guitar ballad with another of our clients, I learned all about early crypto from another coworker "before the first bitcoin bust!" I never expected to meet so many different people who turned out to be so much more accessable and relatable when I made the proactive effort to reach out and get to know them personally outsie of work, even in a remote setting. - High flexibility and autonomy in return for high accountability - The team is very results driven. Outside of meetings you have a lot of flexibility and autonomy with how you get you work done. Your teammates are smart so they will hold you to high standards. The flexibilty is great and let me do some of my best work. I learned so much collaborating and from support of others as well. However, you need to be proactive to get that help and support. - Transparent culture - If you are proactive, you can learn any and everything you need to get your job done and get a lot of direct feedback that helped my growth signficantly in the company. The founders had this saying about "ambition for the team" as in if you are seeking it out to rise all boats then you'll get the access and support to learn and contribute to the business in a way I've never seen at another company. - Good people - SVI has had some of the best people I know. I don't just mean as in smart people and people who I've learned a lot from, nor interesting peole, but the kind of people who take actions in the interests of others. It's this pay it forward mentality that I think comes from Silicon Valley which I saw a lot of people do to help the team and ultimately set a number of people on trajectories to grow in their careers that at least I would not have otherwise. I still keep in touch with many people even after they've moved onto new things.
Cons
I think the most important part about joining the SVI team is the fit. For people like me who are excited to get ahead in their careers, learn with a growth mindset, and be proactive, this is the best professional experience I have had thus far. However, if you're looking for a rigid structure in your lifestyle, you need a lot of physical in person interaction, or you are not proactive or excited to work hard (and be rewarded) then it is probably not a good fit. Not a job if you want to coast - The people who I've seen not be good fits are those who expected to be told what to do and just execute and were not interested in working hard on work they found meaningful or that they cared about doing their best work in. When you're surrounded by people who are striving for excellence, it doesn't work out long if you're not someone who thrives on the same. Smart people will support you here but also push you to do your best. Remote work takes effort to bridge the human gap - Remote work takes time and effort. SVI has been doing it since long before covid, but still had regular in person get togethers with different teams before it. With covid, I think the company's efforts shined to bridge the divide, but still was tough without any in person meetings. For people who are proactive like me, I still felt tied well to my teammates, but I know others who felt mroe lonely. The CEO and management team have worked to add more structure to help with this and I hope that things opening up will help too. Not for a rigid lifestyle - The team gives a lot of flexibility and asks for flexibility in return. Teammates make an effort to make it as convenient as possible for everyone and the management leads by example by taking the least convenient hours thsemlves, but there is some give an take sometimes because of team members and clients in different time zones. This worked great for me - in my time zone, I was able to work in the mornings and evenings and then have time in the middle of the day for my family, but it is not for everyone. Need to be proactive - Of all things, I think think the most important advice I would have for team members is proactivity. I learned so much, made so many friendships, and got so much responsibility and growth by simply asking on a regular basis how I could help and seeking out the problems that could be solved. By being a "servant leader" like one of my managers said, I grew so much myself and in the company and was rewarded for it. However, I know that others who have not been proactive and just waited for support did not have the same kind of experience.
