Great place to work. - Anonymous employee Instrument Employee Review

5.0
Mar 15, 2018
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Access to clients with global brand recognition are a career booster. The projects are generally well managed. The people are really nice, everyone wants to be here, and there is a general feeling of positivity in the office. The stress level in the office is pretty low, mostly due to the fact that the company prides itself on having a reasonable work/life balance. The time-off and benefits are unparalleled for an agency like this.

Cons

I think another reviewer said it well when they called it an “unconventional place”. There is a pretty apparent lack of structure that takes time to get used to…But if you’re the right kind of person you can use this to your advantage and make a place for yourself. The “Instrument” experience is radically different depending on which internal team you work on, and with the larger client relations you can sometimes feel like you’re working in-house. For the quality of clients we work for the pay is honestly sub-par…Using Portland’s cost-of-living as an excuse doesn’t cut it.

Explore other reviews about Instrument

5.0
Jun 26, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great company with great people. Seamless life, work balance, and a very nice company culture.

Cons

No big cons as far as my concern. The pay can be slightly better, but it's okay compared to other agencies' standards.

3.0
Jun 24, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The people here are great. Every team feels fairly connected, even for a 250+ person agency. Work/life balance is the best I've experienced at an agency so far. Pay is fair and scales depending on where you live and your experience overall. Work has the potential to be interesting, but most clients we bring in are not looking for ground-breaking work.

Cons

The benefits are not extraordinary, other than generous PTO. Recently removed a sabbatical program. Layoffs that come as a surprise, with scrambles only months later to fill the eliminated roles. Freelance hiring is hit or miss. Publicly-owned with a parent company that doesn't align with Instrument's morals. Leadership feels fairly disconnected and not genuinely interested in resolving the low morale amongst the larger team. Seemingly more interested in advertising themselves and using AI than in focusing on craft and high-quality projects. Constant leadership departures create anxiety.

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