Pros
UncommonGoods has a great culture -- the people are friendly, and strongly believe in the company's mission of having a positive impact on the world. Management is very open to feedback and focused on improving the employee experience. Working conditions, although getting a little cramped due to the company's fast growth, are laid-back and casual-- your work, not how you look or what time you arrive and leave work, is the most important. Working remotely is not frowned upon and is actually a viable option for some positions. Employee reviews are self-directed, and are focused on substance (ie your contribution to the bottom line) rather than politics or appearances. Although sometimes a little siloed, the departments truly work as a team and cooperate together, with little to no need to compete for credit or the attention of senior management.
Cons
While UncommonGoods' strategy of being more conservative has helped it to weather the Internet bubble and the 2008 financial crisis, the conservatism lends itself to often being less aggressive with innovation, particularly on the integration of technology into the various aspects of the business. Tech resources are highly coveted, and are almost always under heavy strain. Because of this, managers are often under pressure to buy an external technology product rather than build it in-house, which sometimes creates problems with scalability and expertise when we want to either innovate on the technology or adapt it to a new use.
