Pros
• Fast-paced environment. You learn a lot in a short space of time. • Equipment and software is kept up-to-date. • Decent resources available for designers. • Most of the staff are in the same boat as you, so you can make some good friends. • It's possible to get on in the company, but only if the MD likes you.
Cons
• The job is made unnecessarily stressful by the MD, who is very demanding. He can often fly off the handle, to the point of threatening that jobs are on the line. This can unsettle workers for weeks at a time. • Turnaround of staff is appallingly high as a consequence. This is throughout the whole company structure. It’s not uncommon for 2 or 3 people to hand in their notices in the same week. • Staff can be sacked for not working fast enough. New starters are particularly at risk. Some have been known to start work on Monday morning and be gone by Wednesday lunch. • You are expected to work unpaid overtime if the MD is unhappy with how many print runs there have been that day. Usually it’s an hour, but it can be longer. It’s pretty standard to work 3-5 extra unpaid hours a week with no thanks whatsoever. • Very little compassion shown by MD and senior staff. If you are ill, they make you feel like it’s your fault. • Expenses are hard to claim back. The MD likes to hang on to the money for as long as possible. • Pay is at the lower end of the scale.