Vantaggi
I worked at many different iterations of Addepar and a common theme in most of them was "a smart group of people who care". It's filled with really interesting challenges, dedicated colleagues and plenty of opportunities if you're willing to seek them out. If you're generally self-driven and say yes to opportunities, it's a wonderful place to be, particularly if you're an IC. The average quality of engineering stayed quite high. It varied from "really good" to "superb" at different points in time. Comp was generally above market, though equity packages varied hugely depending on when you joined (earlier wasn't always better). There were generally exceptional work-related events, offsites, etc until the COVID era and even then, the pivots to lovely gifts in lieu of events were thoughtfully curated and generous. The company was very supportive in the COVID era and did a generally great job, though the shift did have an impact - there was a pretty strong and vibrant in-office culture. Work-life balance is what you make of it. The expectations are generally very reasonable, though the real A players often went way above and beyond. I knew folks who did their stuff and were happy and some who truly worked their tails off. I have a lot of fond memories I'm really grateful that I got to create.
Svantaggi
Many over the years, but none that didn't reflect the stage the company was in. Most importantly, they were usually good about adapting and listening. I think this was largely due to EP's leadership style. At the time I left, the only notable cons were disparate accountability criteria for engineering teams and some questionable senior management (many were excellent, but some truly stood out in the wrong way). I think Addepar also slightly whiffed on the opportunity to have a more diverse engineering/R&D team. I'm no expert on the topic and there's no doubt the fintech arena is a challenging one, but that's one area I personally regret not advocating more strongly for.