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      Sweetwater

      Engaged Employer

      Sweetwater reviews

      4.2

      81% would recommend to a friend

      (541 total reviews)
      avatar

      Mike Clem

      90% approve of CEO

      73% positive business outlook

      Ratings by demographic groups

      Sweetwater has an employee rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars, based on 541 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The Sweetwater employee rating is 24% above average for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.4 stars).

      Reviews by job title

      541 reviews
      3.0
      Mar 28, 2018

      Great Experience for Resume- Not a long term career

      Sales assistant
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      Sweetwater boasts a lot of great amenities, with a nice gym for employees and an excellent campus. The employees are some of the best people you will meet in one building.

      Cons

      It’s next to impossible to move up in the company without the ever-coveted “gear knowledge”; ie- experience with music instruments and live sound equipment. That isn’t surprising, given the nature of a lot of the work that is done at Sweetwater. What IS surprising is the amount of time and effort put into the extensive “Sweetwater University” training for incoming Sales Engineers who already possess some level of music industry experience, but that same training experience is walled off to current employees who want to move up and add more value to the company in a capacity outside of selling retail.

      avatar
      Sweetwater Response
      8y
      We are somewhat confused by this review, given that a significant number (about a dozen) employees in the Sales Assistant role have been promoted to the Sales Engineer role and therefore enrolled in Sweetwater University training over the past few years.
      5.0
      Mar 1, 2018

      Great Job. Love it.

      Manager
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      Excellent facility. Consistent year over year growth. Privately held. Leader in their field. Employees are very smart and knowledgeable. Great people. On site gym, hair salon, arcade, music store, racquetball court, and many, many other amenities. Absurdly low cost of living. Close to major cities like Indy, Chicago and Detroit. You will never again spend a lot of time commuting or sitting in traffic. City has a lot to offer for a city of it's size, and is consistently improving. Owner is someone you can feel proud working for, and the company consistently does the right things for the community and its customers. Chuck Surack gives back to the community in a HUGE way.

      Cons

      If you are from a large city, Fort Wayne will take some getting used to. Weather in the Winter can be brutal. You have to pay for your coffee. You will spend all your money on gear if you are not careful!

      avatar
      Sweetwater Response
      7y
      Thanks for the positive review. A lot of very positive things are happening in Fort Wayne to help it evolve into a vibrant city, and we are working diligently to be a big part of that transformation. We're glad that over all you are happy and want to work here a long time. Like you we love gear, but please don't spend all your money on gear: groceries and mortgage payments are important too :-) Jeff McDonald, Senior VP of Human Resources
      2.0
      Feb 28, 2018

      Great Job If You Completely Ignore Management

      Sales engineer
      Recommend
      CEO approval
      Business Outlook

      Pros

      This job provides great benefits and gains financially if you work hard and put in a lot of hours which is amazing. You can earn a great living quickly if you focus on yourself and no one else.

      Cons

      Sales Management is the driving force behind watering-down of quality here. They lead from fear of being fired themselves and expect Sales Engineers to do this job from an idealistic perspective rather than a practical one and it causes people to leave the company very quickly because they constantly feel lied to. Training does not prepare you for the actual job and management will use its hands-off approach to watch you get frustrated and leave.

      avatar
      Sweetwater Response
      8y
      We're sorry, but this review is just not correct. I have been here for almost 13 years as the head of Human Resources and in that time there isn't a single Sales Manager who has been terminated, had any kind of write up or other disciplinary action, or received anything less than a very good rating. So the idea that managers are "leading from fear of being fired themselves" is, frankly, preposterous. As far as not doing the job from a practical standpoint, scores of the 330+ courses we teach in Sweetwater University are incredibly practical: teaching, training and giving exact pointers on how to build a data base, use our CRM system, track progress, etc. How in the world this comes across as lying to a new hire is beyond us. If we truly were constantly lying to Sales Engineers,, our turnover rate for that job would be extremely high. It is actually single digits, which is fairly unheard in a commission sales environment. Even the reviewer admits that people can have a successful career here and earn a great living quickly. I'm not quite sure how that comes across as lying. --Jeff McDonald, Senior VP of Human Resources
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      ReviewsSweetwater reviews

      Glassdoor has 571 Sweetwater reviews submitted anonymously by Sweetwater employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Sweetwater is right for you.