Vantaggi
- Feel good mission to extend the lifespan and wellspan of dogs (with potential to learn more about human biology as well) - Exciting, cutting edge category with a product that users are emotionally invested in - Brand of choice amongst consumers, synonymous with accuracy and scientific leadership - Limitless product opportunities - DNA offers a jumping off point to many other areas - Employees are passionate about pets and science, and possess a wide range of skill sets - people from consumer e-commerce, academia, diagnostics, pharma, etc. - Company values action & impact, giving agency and accountability to teams, respect and empathy - My team (product) in particular is stacked with super talented people who are a pleasure to work with. Contrary to a frankly bizarre statement in an earlier review, the strength of this team really comes down to a lot of hard work by the CPO to recruit, shape, and empower the individuals in it.
Svantaggi
Like many companies, Embark has unfortunately seen some layoffs due to pandemic-related overgrowth - which has impacted morale somewhat and resulted in some spicy comments on Glassdoor that should be viewed in that light. From my perspective, Embark’s biggest issue is that, like other companies at this awkward teenage phase, it’s struggling to decide what it wants to be when it grows up. This trickles down into a lack of strategic focus and competing visions for the ideal org design and operating model. Embark is also struggling with a lot of technical debt - way too much for a company of this size and vintage. This makes it a lot harder to ship product than it should be.