I've rated Schellman as 5 stars, so obviously the cons are few and far between. However, one of the most important things to realize about this company is that its ability to succeed is based a lot on how it functions at its core; it is able to provide employees with great benefits and pay because it is able to do lots of work with very few resources, and keeps expenses at a minimum. With that in mind, there are some tradeoffs that one should be aware of while seeking employment here.
- I mentioned as a pro that Schellman is a flexible and mobile workforce with lots of working from home, which at many times is convenient and a great feature of the job, but unfortunately that means that there is not much of a social aspect as a part of the culture. Some cities have rented office space, but the majority do not, and there is no place to go aside from your home office when you are not on a client. This is a cost-cutting measure that does indirectly benefit the employee through the profit sharing bonuses, but if you're doing remote work for several months in a row, which happens, you may get a little stir crazy without an office to go to. It also unfortunately means that you will not interfact with many of the people you work with in person very often, and you'll only see most of the firm once a year on the annual company trip. If you place a lot of value on deriving part of your social life from your employment, this is not going to be that for you. Just something to keep in mind.
- While Schellman is a great company that most consultants/auditors would love to work for, it is not for everyone. This is a fast-paced, and highly efficient operation that does expect a lot from its employees. That in and of itself is not a con, this is after all a place of employment, but if you think this is a place where you can coast and hide behind a large team, this isn't the right fit for you. Hours are not unreasonable most of the time, but there will be periods that are really heavy when you have to open up the laptop again after dinner for a few hours. The overlapping of engagements is unavoidable and time management is perhaps one of the most valuable skills to have here. There really aren't any light periods as new work is constantly being won. Those great benefits and salary come with the cost of a slight-to-moderate hit to work-life balance.