HubSpot

I work on the product team, so my experience is definitely shaped by that part of the company.

• The people here are really fantastic: super smart and very friendly. Having been at early-stage startups previously, it is wonderful to have a deep bench of people to learn from, whether about engineering, product design, or growing a product. If you want to start your own startup someday, this is a fantastic launching pad.

• While marketing/sales software doesn't immediately sound thrilling to some, HubSpot is way more customer-focused than most software companies and really engages with them. Even as an engineer, you can have a lot of interactions with customers in direct feedback, user testing, Inbound, etc. They are truly appreciative of the work that goes into building the product.

• The company doesn't rest on its laurels, and that is true about launching new products, settling for outdated technology, or anything else. It is fast-paced and always looks to improve.

• The culture is very oriented about learning and growth. The product team structure gives employees meaningful responsibility early and coaching along the way. It is well-suited to people who really want to grow/learn (which can sometimes mean operating outside of your comfort zone).

• The management team is smart, and overall the company is really good at course-correcting when something doesn't work out. It has a very experiment-driven culture and will double down when it works and try again when it doesn't.

• It is far from perfect, but it is an organization that comes closer to truly living its values than most and strives to do better over time.

The environment puts a lot of responsibility on people's shoulders. People get to choose their own level of engagement. It is definitely not required to work heavy hours, but some do. Similarly, some people opt-out of most cultural/fun outings (and that is fine), but others have a lot of friends at work. There isn't a single answer to how much people work.

A lot of focus is put on the small teams, which can mean things feel a little chaotic. There isn't always an obvious central plan and so it requires talking across teams and engaging with communities to make sure teams stay appropriately in sync.

Keep the focus on serving SMB customers and on "solving for the customer".