software engineer

product engineer

senior product engineer

account manager

solutions engineer

Esri

I enjoyed most of my time at Esri.  It was my first job out of tech school and I couldn't have been more excited to be working for the industry leader in GIS. In support, there a couple of different shifts to choose from, which meant I could opt to work from 7, so I could leave earlier in the afternoon. 

I learned way more in my 2 years as a support analyst there than I would have with any other organization. Dealing with clients in all states of mind was fantastic, I learned soft skills, like patience and compassion, which I have been able to take with me and use throughout my career.  Technically, I became very resourceful and technically savvy, learning to think and talk on my feet, digging up answers without losing the client's confidence.

The biggest issue I had was the way the advancement worked.  In order to apply for an internal position, be it within your current department or in another department, you need to have your managers permission.  This leaves a lot up to subjectivity - if you are great at your job, they might want to impede your professional progress, so as not to lose you, if they like someone else better, they might sign off on their application, and not yours.  These types of things happened often and made the environment less than pleasant for those affected.  Managers were often promoted by way cronyism or nepotism, and not always leadership qualities and skills.

As an entry level position, the pay was OK, but not really good.  Increases are based on "merit," which is determined by your manager.  Sick, Bereavement and Vacation time available were bare minimum, health and dental coverage was excellent.  Coming from another country, the recruiting staff were incredibly helpful with the immigration paper work and worked tirelessly to get me over some major hurdles and into my position there.

My experience here was unfortunately bad and felt obligated to share my experience as it is all too common. During my time at ESRI, I had no support from management as my supervisor intimidated and belittled me everyday. I was told I disposable daily, it got so bad I didn't know if Id get paid for a full day work. I was told from HR & management to either take it or leave. Management doesn't care about your career aspirations and there is little to any movement/promotions. There is high turn over, don't expect to work here and for things to be fair. Interns are paid more than those with more experience. Non-exempt employees are treated as second class. Working hard isn't good enough here to make it. The company has a reputation for "spitting out" those who don't quite fit. I've spoken to many people around the community who have had similar negative experiences. Most people do not end up making it long term, so don't be fooled by the fact that people have worked there for years. If you end up working here know that you are taking a risk, it could possibly and will most likely NOT work. I would consider this company to be more of a bridge job rather than a career. The job itself was easy but the culture was one of complaints, gossip, and unfriendly colleagues. It sucked the life out of many people and it affected their performance/moral. Inconsistent and malicious  management/supervisors doesn't allow you to focus on your craft. Leaving this company was the best decision I could of made. Avoid this company due to the fact that it has HIGH turnover, malicious management, low pay, no advancement, and job insecurity. 



Esri is a tight-knit company, known the world over for its geographic information system (GIS) development and applications. The CEO is very active at Esri's Redlands HQ, and is very involved with the staff.

The atmosphere is "professional casual", at least in the information technology building where I worked. Break and lunch times were fairly lax, and a typical day would usually involve mixing meetings, busywork alone, and breaks. Despite the laid-back atmosphere, tasks and projects are still generally completed on time and according to specifications.

Management was particularly excellent at Esri. Since it's a relatively small company, managers know each other very well even between departments on different sides of the campus. Generally, everyone will make time to accommodate you if there are any questions you need answered. Management in my group was excellent, and made very good progress on scheduling between team members and allocating enough workforce to complete projects.

However, there is still overtime expected of staff here, which I believe is a fair trade for the relaxed atmosphere this workplace gives. If you are looking just to reduce your work hours, this company may not be for you.

Redlands is only accessible using the I-10 freeway, which means that it shares a lot of commute space with people going to and from Los Angeles. Because of this, the commute tends to be pretty bad.

In management here for nearly 7 years, I enjoyed the interaction I had with my team. We were a very strong team, meeting weekly to review our goals and expectations, discuss any challenges, and address any issues at hand. The work was difficult but we got through every challenge presented to us. We worked with international distributors so we needed to be aware of cultural differences and often times language barriers. I held my team to high standards and they were always aware of my expectations - and they were such a great team, they made my job so easy. I was very proud to say I was their manager, and one HR representative told me I did more for my team as a team builder than any other manager on campus. I just wanted to encourage them to be the best they could be so they could move on and be more than account managers. So many of them were superstars!

What is the best part of working at the company?
Overall, a very good company for people who want a stable income and are not ambitious in their career path. Good job security and no layoff because Jack is a kind guy; good medical and dental package; yearly pre-tax bonus deposited to 401K; work/life balance; inexpensive living cost in the cheap surrounding cities

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
An Esri employee is paid by hours. So how to get hours from manager is critical. You can get more and easy hours if you are manager's favorite. Otherwise, your work will be miserable 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Very rare opportunity for career growth so peers' competition is low; as result, the relation among co-workers is friendly

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Depending which department you are in. You are very relaxed and can spend most of your day walking around on the company's campus if you are in the core product (ArcGIS) department; you feel anxious most time to look for approved hours from your manager if you are in the professional services department.

A typical day at Esri would be exciting as i got the chance to make my day whatever it needed to be above and beyond my normal work duties.  Be it a candy bar station, fresh flowers or a birthday celebration it was always something to bring a lighter part of these heavy hitters day. 
Management was great towards these activities, but unfortunately, not towards promoting us.  Management was like our friend but was not secure enough in their position to make things happen for their staff.  This would be the hardest part of the job.  As I watched so many educated and  skilled young people stay on the same level for so long.  
But what I will remember most of Esri is the awesome support I received from Everyone when my husband got sick and during his last 2 1/2 years of life Esri was there for me like no other.  I never was made to feel bad about time off and my team did everything they would to ensure my work continued in my absence.  I will never forget...

I have spent many hours learning new skills, made myself clear to management and HR about what my passions are, and what I want to do in the future. I certified myself in the new skill, and continued educating myself by attending school and made sure I was learning skills to help my  current department and future position. 

This all went nowhere. I felt management and HR turned the other way, never encouraged and applauded my non-stop drive to learn and advance. I felt esri would rather hire peon interns and outsiders instead of focusing on the people that have dedicated themselves long term. 

I WAS happy go lucky, excited to advance and impress my colleagues, and be awesome for esri. Instead, with the constant cold shoulders of my leaders that enjoys the focus on minute failings, my goals were to learn what I need to learn, educate myself, and hash out of esri and never turn back. I am very keen, educated, fun, and drive to succeed. The company that knows how to recognize this will be extremely, and pleasantly happy.

At the icon and design division, we were given unique projects to design for different clients within Esri and also develop products to better the company in general. I learned how to utilize Illustrator to its full potential and tested my limits in problem-solving while learning it. The culture is overall welcoming and encouraging, getting help and critique from other departments and creators are encouraged, which was the most enjoyable aspect of the internship. The most difficult part was working without tools that full-time employees had access to, but in the end, the challenge helped me learn even more.

The schedule is very customizable to work with commuting and other events later or earlier in the day. Throughout a work day, I'd work on my assigned project and do check-ins regularly with my project leaders to make sure my designs were on schedule and within the guidelines.

Offers great work/life balance with ample opportunities for learning and personal development. In product development, you can shape the direction of your career to an extent; however, career advancement can be slow given the flat company structure. Coworkers are great for the most part, although known troublemakers are tolerated without consequences, or simply shuffled from team to team. Middle management is pulled mostly from long-time employees, regardless of leadership qualities. Company culture has declined over the past few years, with complacency setting in. This, along with below-industry pay seems to drive talented and motivated people elsewhere. Despite this, it's a good place to start your career and offers good work/life balance. 

ESRI was once the crown jewel of the inland empire. Unfortunately, an influx of 'horrible bosses' over the course of the last few years has effectively ruined a once great company. Since it is a privately held company, corporate can spew whatever stories they want to the industry media outlets. The company seems to hire only senior-level positions. All other positions are filled with temporary staff or contractors. This allows ESRI to avoid having to provide benefits to these folks. Also, after about 6-months on the job, an HR representative will either smile and kick you out the door, or tell you what your new job title is so they can reset the clock for another 6-months of work with no benefits. I've worked very hard for almost 17-years at this company. I've seen good times and bad times - but it has now become unbearable.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Software engineer 6 salaries reported	$49.50 per hour
Product engineer 6 salaries reported	$84,427 per year
Senior product engineer 5 salaries reported	$107,574 per year
Account manager 11 salaries reported	$131,607 per year
Solutions engineer 9 salaries reported	$107,929 per year

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