Ethical deficiency, sexism, lack of integrity, overwhelming micromanagement - Anonymous employee Avalara Employee Review

1.0
Jun 16, 2017
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

* Company aspires to provide employees with perks like the finest Silicon Valley firms. * Good work-life balance * Co-workers went out of their way to assist each other, often without recognition * Casual working environment

Cons

* Rampant nepotism creates an atmosphere of back-stabbing. * Leave your integrity and ethics at the door. Regional executive was more interested in bottom-line numbers than providing quality services for clients. Staff was instructed to send incomplete, inaccurate or unprofessional work to clients in order to pad the balance sheet. Unsubstantiated conclusions were included in reports without citing sources. * Misogyny and favoritism was overwhelming. One worker arrived whenever it was convenient for her (it was probably a coincidence that her thong was exposed every day). Execs used to joke during onboarding that her hours were "whenever she felt like arriving." A friend was hired and showered with perks: his own office, took him to lunch multiple times a week, extended time to learn the system without any productivity requirements. The friend resigned before making a significant contribution. * Supervisors were crude and unprofessional. One would disappear for "lunch" with friends (translation: he would go out for drinks). A supervisor insinuated that he slept with one of his managers while at a meeting in Washington. A supervisor passed out at his desk after an office party where he made margaritas. * Upper management was not interested in knowing what happened in Rocklin. HR said CEO would reach out after Washington was notified of the situation in California. No follow-up was ever done. * Micromanagerial policies were implemented requiring a morning meeting laying out the working expectations for the day, a follow-up email chart documenting the work discussed at the meeting, and documenting the completed work on the emailed chart at the day's end. The meetings, charts, and emails wasted 30-45 minutes each day. It felt like a law office documenting billable time.

Explore other reviews about Avalara

5.0
Jul 13, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Cutting edge technologies Very Smart colleagues Great business model

Cons

High hiring and performance bar

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Avalara Response
5d
Thank you for sharing your experience at Avalara. We’re glad to hear the technology and your teammates have made a positive impact. We appreciate your feedback and your contributions.
4.0
Jul 17, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Is Avalara a great place to work? It depends on the team you are on. Pros: - I love my team. I have great co-workers. I feel like leadership to the VP level understands the value we bring and advocates for our work throughout the company - I like being able to go into the office and see people and bounce ideas around - My manager is always pushing me to learn new things and get out of my comfort zone - We just got a new CEO and I am super excited about him and his vision. Everyone who has actually been in meetings with him is excited too.

Cons

It depends on the team you are on. Cons: - Some teams are not as curious/helpful as others. I often have to check and recheck the work they do, after I have chased them multiple times to even complete the work - The layoff fear is real, the idea that at any point your position could be eliminated because they want to keep that revenue per headcount KPI down is everywhere

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Avalara Response
1d
Thank you for taking the time to share such thoughtful insight. We're glad to hear your team and manager have had a positive impact on your experience, and we're encouraged by your optimism about Avalara's future. We also recognize how important it is for that experience to feel consistent across the company, and we appreciate you sharing your perspective.
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