Young fun company, little to no direction. - Professional Services Alchemer Employee Review

2.0
Mar 13, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great coworkers, lots of free food and beer, relaxing work environment. This is about as fun of an atmosphere as you can have for an office. Great place to work if you arent thinking more than a year ahead for your career path. Company tries hard to move forward in the right direction.

Cons

Little to no room for career growth, inexperienced managers who are entirely CEO facing and have no idea what it means to manage a team. Ideas are implemented but never fully thought out resulting in tons of wasted time. CEO that had the reigns of the heart and soul of the company slowly backing away, leaving big decisions to managers who have little to no experience and even less leadership experience. Rampant. Office. Politics.

avatar
Alchemer Response
11y
Good Review. I think you cover some valid points... although potentially a little biased. Still, I think this is a useful review for folks that might want to work at SurveyGizmo. Every company likes a to paint an ideal picture of themselves online... but as the reviewer notes, we have some warts too. SurveyGizmo is a small, bootstrapped business. In terms of the Harvard's Business Review's Stages of Business Growth -- we can't pretend to be in any other stage than 3-G. Successful. Growing, but not a mature larger organization yet. Which means we're going to be small, agile, make mistakes and there won't be as many opportunities for rapid professional development in a company of 65 as there would be in an organization of 300. We're definitely in a mid-zone. Most roles are now defined, so the opportunity to shift between jobs and develop new skills feels slower than before (especially if you want rapid career advancement like you can find in a younger start up). On the bright side, we do have fiscal security, great benefits and with a few exceptions that we're correcting (as warranted -- see my comments in the next review) we're mid-high range for salaries now. If you're looking to work here I recommend reading and thinking carefully about this review. It's honest and heartfelt from a member of our staff (although I don't know who). In terms of management -- yep, according to the by line for this review, the staff member who wrote this is working for one of our least experienced managers. The manager knows it. As CEO I am stepping back and working through the manager to help develop their management skills. They will make mistakes, and they will learn. They (we all) take their mistakes to heart. To the reviewer: I am still available to everyone (come talk to me if you have questions). As the manager of the managers it is my job to coach them and help develop their management and leadership skills. I don't think I can do that effectively if I override them all the time or steal their thunder as I used to! :-) Be patient, all skills take time. If I didn't think they could get there, they won't be in their positions. :-) In terms of a place to work -- I recommend us if you are energetic, flexible (and forgiving), and you already have a professional development plan that you are working on. We can augment it -- but we're not at a stage yet where we can create it for someone. I would amend the reviewer's comment and say that we're a great place to work if you are thinking about your career in terms of five to ten years not two to three. I mean that honestly, not as a knock against the review. Thanks again for the feedback! Even if it's anonymous, I appreciate it! Cheers, Christian CEO

Explore other reviews about Alchemer

5.0
May 5, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great opportunities to grow your career in a fast paced, exciting industry.

Cons

No cons at this point.

avatar
Alchemer Response
1mo
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We’re thrilled to hear that you’ve found strong career growth opportunities at Alchemer and are enjoying the fast-paced, exciting nature of the industry. Supporting our employees’ professional development and creating an environment where people can grow is incredibly important to us. We appreciate your feedback and are glad to have you as part of the team.
3.0
Jun 26, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great people in the sales organization.

Cons

The product team and some in leadership are disconnected from the market. Probably aren't the right people to grow Alchemer, especially in the AI age. New products don't work and are delivered a year behind schedule. Tough to hit the target when you have nothing to sell.

avatar
Alchemer Response
1w
Thank you for sharing your experience and for your continued dedication to the sales team. We hear your concerns about product delivery timelines and alignment with market needs; these are challenges we take seriously and are actively working to improve.
See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All