Ventajas
The main office in Swansea boasts a large breakout area with table tennis, arcade games and a space to play video games and/or watch TV. Breakfast is occasionally provided on Day 0 and everyone looks forward to pie day Friday, which occurs every few months. The people are friendly, and if you want to learn and grow, both technically and personally, there are plenty of talented individuals who can help you on your way. Progression and feedback is encouraged, and the company is open to you changing roles or moving between departments. There are opportunities to work with newer technologies and there is a training allowance for further learning. Bi-weekly chapter meetings allow for all front end developers to get together to share knowledge and present ideas. People are encouraged to share, and these meetings are generally very productive & fun. The front end team are eager, driven and focused. Working hours are flexible, core hours are between 10AM-12PM and 2PM-4PM, so you can work around those. Working days are 7.5 hours. Other benefits include free tea & coffee, a day off on your birthday, matched pension up to 5%, occasional work from home when needed (after probationary period), days off for charitable events (all funds raised are matched by the company) and cycle to work scheme.
Desventajas
Front end developers encouraged to learn back-end and become full stack, they want you to be a jack of all trades. The company is now starting to see that specialist front end teams are needed, which is good. Work can sometimes be high pressured due to unrealistic deadlines and scope changes mid-sprint. It can be frustrating. Process not always followed by senior teams, which doesn’t set a good example.