Boiler Room - Business Development Executive Usablenet Employee Review

1.0
Jul 20, 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

It was a great product, at the time when I just started iPads were in full swing and we had a great story to tell “we can make your webpage adjust to any device, screen size across any platform or carrier. Our technology would identify the kind of device the user has and adjust to fit it providing the user with a rich experience”. We would finish the pitch with “would you buy from someone that had a complicated purchasing process? I know I wouldn’t” The solution itself was absolutely fantastic, especially the web accessibility options they built in to mobile sites. At the time, the sales team was comprised of little over 10 people. Most of us were transplants to NY and we were happy to form new friendships. Often times, we would hang out together in the evenings or on the evenings and to avoid the busy subways after work, we'd go down to the nearby bar, play pool, and just talk. It was a close group of sales people, we motivated each other and enjoyed working together. Great times lasted until the pressures of work started to get to us.

Cons

The CEO was a complete nut case! It was very challenging for him to lead a team and also run a company. He would lose temper constantly and was unable to handle bad news. We had DAILY sales meetings about nothing, it was basically him telling us how much we suck and how he single-handedly brought the company to where it is today and for us it should be a walk in the park to hit our metrics and bring in deals. Each one of the sales people had their own list of accounts and territories that they called into. The daily goal was to book 2 demos, and to present 2 demos - a day. If by 5PM you did not hit those targets, you would have 30 minutes for a cigarette break or coffee or whatever and then from 5:30 to 8PM you would get back to your desk and start calling West Coast customers. We would call the same companies ALL day trying to get a hold of anyone that would take our call. Some customers forbid us from call them anymore, they even blocked our phone numbers, but due to the pressures of that were surrounding us, we used our cell phones to continue to place calls into them. We had to “book meetings” doesn’t matter with who, doesn’t matter if they were in the position to buy, just to put our names on the board and get out of the office at a decent hour. There wasn't really a "manager" there were two team leads and the CEO. Our jobs were threatened twice to three times a week. When asking to take vacation, the response would be “that’s what weekends are for”. The pressure was really getting to us all, and the lack of training, guidance, vision and leadership eventually led to the high turnover that the company and the custiers began experiencing.

Explore other reviews about Usablenet

5.0
Apr 8, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Real responsibility Opportunity to talk to high level business people Learn all aspects of a technology company Upward mobility

Cons

Need to have an Entrepreneur-like mindset to be successful

5.0
Apr 6, 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The organizational culture is exceptional—the Head of Human Resources genuinely cares about employees, and the VP of Sales stands out as one of the most honest and thoughtful leaders I've encountered. The company strikes a great balance in size: it's small enough that leadership in Marketing, Finance, and Legal are consistently accessible via email, yet large enough that someone is always available to handle urgent issues across time zones. Even though the organization operates fully remotely, teamwork is seamless, and unnecessary meetings are minimized, making work efficient and focused. Senior management is experienced, but also young enough to be trusted with navigating the rapid changes coming to technology in the next five years.

Cons

The organization strongly prioritizes efficiency, meaning company perks such as retreats, swag, and merchandise are minimal. Because the team is highly skilled, new hires must be prepared to hit the ground running to succeed. Additionally, the relatively flat, egalitarian structure might not appeal to individuals accustomed to the hierarchical ranking systems common at FAANG companies.

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