Absolutely No Hope For Lyris - unless they change management or start from scratch - Senior Software Engineer Lyris Employee Review

1.0
Sep 25, 2010
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Just location. SF bay area is beautiful. I love it! Nothing to do with this company though. I have very little good to say about this company. Sorry. I wish I could lie a little.

Cons

No Methodology: They do not use Agile/SCRUM the right way. They are learning how to use this. But management has no real clue on how to implement it. Inconsistent performance reviews: No performance reviews or inconsitent (don't be surprised to get 2,3 or 4 quarters reviews the same week). No/void tasks priorities: No clear guidance as to priority of tasks and tasks switch constantly. There is priority but it can change any second. This makes priority unimportant and voids any management process. This leaves you with many incomplete tasks and many things to do in your plate at once. Poor product/development management: No clear idea as to what is more important in the product. They don't use analysts and don't use a formal way to get requirements. Not a strong bond(cohesion) in the organization: Multiple teams working on similar tasks without sharing knowledge or clear direction. Layoffs: Recent layoffs of many key individuals. I think they let go to save money and show higher profit the next quarter. Poor compensation: Initial salary looks good, but stay there 4, 5 or more years and you may not get an increase. This company does not give raises/bonuses, 401K, etc. Well, they may offer 401k and bonus now that they are under the radar but don't be surprised if after a quarter of getting hired they stop that along with other things. That happens to everyone working for this company! No advancement: This company does not promote within the organization. Instead they love to hire from outside. Poor communication between management and crew: High executives don't speak clearly. For example, recently the CEO was changed and a customer knew this before the employees. Also, some external people knew about some layoffs coming before the employees. This is a shame.

Explore other reviews about Lyris

5.0
May 1, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Product People Salary Location Benefits

Cons

Got sold and people left

4.0
Aug 1, 2014
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Engineering is leading a remarkable change in the company, development of a very slick set of web services for direct marketing. The vision is not only a state-of-the-art marketing platform, but a way to smoothly migrate the existing customer base. The engineering teams are sharp, small and agile, marketing and sales are aligned. And the work environment is friendly, personal and informal, much more of an East Bay culture than the less-personal Silicon Valley experience. There isn't a lot of process, and with 150 employees, it's easy to know who to talk to when you want to get something done. The usual perks, free parking and drinks and a beer fridge you can hit whenever. I can grab a beer at lunch in the middle of a full day. Management is available for a chat, and I don't experience a lot of political activity. What you see is pretty much what you get.

Cons

The company is traumatized by several mis-steps over the last six years, which have left a mark. It's historically grown by acquisition, and must now innovate ahead of the competition. The sales and marketing teams are used to selling software and a website with features. The future will be a platform of web services, with a web interface but also capable of marketing automation in a big way. This is a tough paradigm shift, although the audience is the same, fortunately. There are bigger and better-funded players, for example ExactTarget is owned by Salesforce, and Responsys is now the Oracle Marketing Cloud.

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