Sphero reviews

3.7

60% would recommend to a friend

(50 total reviews)

Paul Copioli

90% approve of CEO

39% positive business outlook

Sphero has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 50 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Sphero employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Information Technology industry (3.9 stars).

Reviews by job title

50 reviews
1.0
May 31, 2018

Wasted talent

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Passionate and hard working co-workers.

Cons

The company isn’t run by folks interested in toys, robots, connected play, or education. They are all career business starters that will jump to the next big money opportunity when given a chance. There is no consistent vision. In the absence of real passion about what we are doing, instead of realizing a desired goal we are constantly pivoting to account for a perceived notion of what an investor wants to hear. Work life balance is terrible.

avatar
Sphero Response
8y
We appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback. Launching global high-tech products is a huge undertaking, and we are not immune to the inevitable change that can happen, especially as a startup. We actively strive to make the best long-term business decisions for the company as a whole, while staying true to our values and mission of educating and illuminating lives through tech-enabled play. This is an iterative process, and we are continuing to learn and grow in this endeavor, so thank you for the feedback. In regard to work-life balance, we recognize that the workload that goes along with launching our products may have spikes. We are focused on better defining the work to level out these spikes in the future. If you would like to share more about your specific experiences, please reach out to the People team at people@sphero.com so that we can set up a time to talk. Thanks again for the feedback as it will help make Sphero a better place to work.
5.0
Jul 22, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The software and production teams at Sphero are incredibly talented and creative, but also supportive. There's a culture of mentorship and learning among the software engineers. The team members are good at providing feedback and having candid conversations about what it takes to make something special. It's not only common for junior engineers to ask for help, but also senior engineers feel comfortable asking junior engineers for a hand too. It all seems like just what it takes to create awesome things. Everyone takes a genuine interest in the development and they work together to solve the challenges. The collaboration between engineers and artists is close. Engineers and artists and designers are in a constant back-and-forth that gives the team members a real impact on the direction of the product. For example, I've seen a new junior engineer have an idea that changed the entire direction of a product that was used by millions of people, and his name is on the patent now. People there are generous with their feedback, generous with their ideas, and there's a shared sense of accomplishment. There's time to create your own hacks and try out your own product ideas. There's opportunities to help at fun events all around the country. In addition to being a software engineer, I also got to publicly speak about our technologies at events, help children in classrooms all over the country learn to program, organize hackathons, and even visit the White House. The work is meaningful, fun, and full of surprises.

Cons

Many Sphero products are entertainment products, and while they're incredibly fun to make and to play, the production of entertainment products has special demands. The development is very iterative, because fun has to be *found*, not dictated. This means that hard work will end up being cut from the final product, and features will change. You can't be too married to any idea, technology, or solution. Sphero's product releases and announcements are very focused on strategic events, such as Christmas, Toy Fair, CES, and Comic Con. While there's a lot of opportunity to nerd out at some awesome conferences, it can get intense leading up to these dates. It's exciting, but also demanding. Sphero wants to make completely new things, so *what* they make, and by extension, *how* it's made, changes by every year. It's possible to be hired as an expert at one platform, and be doing full-time work in a completely new environment the next year. Developers have to be flexible enough to embrace completely unheard-of challenges where there are no best practices.

3.0
Jun 29, 2016
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Disney Licensed Product (StarWars) Somewhat flexible work schedule Good salary & benefits Free food to keep you at the office working

Cons

Company growing too fast Transition period between startup and corp. Limited processes and controls. Leadership lacking direction and over tasked No mentor ship Bad decision making happening Heavy work loads Divided house on Culture, Values and Product

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Sphero Response
10y
Thank you for the feedback. We feel confident our values remain strong, our culture is a focus to maintain as we grow, and our product road map is complete for the next several years. That is not to say we can't or won't need to shift our product road map in that timeframe if needed. We also feel that minimizing our process and controls to only what is necessary fosters creativity and innovation and that may not be the best fit for everyone. Well wishes in your next opportunity when you find it.
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Glassdoor has 54 Sphero reviews submitted anonymously by Sphero employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Sphero is right for you.