Intelligent People, Great Culture, Diverse Opportunities
Pros
I have been working at Summit for a few years and I have seen the company grow and take on new challenges. There are a number of positive qualities that are important to note: 1) The people are intelligent, and great to work with. One of the greatest pleasures of working at Summit is that you get to collaborate with a group of smart, dedicated individuals, who know how to work hard, but also have a good time. You get to learn and share experiences with folks with diverse backgrounds and skills. 2) The work is interesting and engaging. For a growing firm, there are number of opportunities to work on projects in the public and private sector clients across subject areas: health, public finance, regulation, applied statistics and econometrics, program evaluation, and more. Please note however, it can take a year or so of working on a single project before you have the opportunity to work on new engagements, but managers are willing and supportive for you to gain new experiences and learn new skills. 3) Culture Culture Culture. From the very beginning (when I started) Summit has been dedicated to having a culture of growth, opportunity, but most importantly taking care of it's staff. Sometimes is may seem trivial or silly, but these items add up. Summit allows for flexible hours and work environment, a good work-life balance, and supports fun social events such as social sports and happy hours.
Cons
All of these positive items being said, it is important to recognize the areas of improvement. 1) Summit has grappled with the ability to communicate with the staff in an open and transparent way. Like in all relationships, communication is key, and that between management and staff is just as critical. It is the right of the leadership to decide what is necessary to share, however. This issue is usually multi-fold, including timely communication, consistent messages provided to all staff, and most importantly, describing why management is moving forward with the steps they are taking. To the credit of leadership, they are currently taking large steps to address the issues of timeliness and consistent communication. However the third item could use more improvements (see advice for more). 2) Opportunities for growth. This item is a bit of a double edged sword. In some ways Summit is a bit of a teenager, growing in fits and spurts, and still trying to find it's place. While it's great that Summit is still a great place for new opportunities, there are occasional periods of stagnation. While management would like everyone to grow, there are only so many opportunities, and not everyone can be promoted at the same time. This can sometimes lead to feelings of disappointment and resentment: "why can't I get promoted"? Skills and experience are only one component, company growth is another major factor.
