Pros
I thoroughly enjoyed working at Zipabout. My role was varied, challenging and interesting and suited me very well. I was able to discuss ideas and plans with the team and the directors and always felt that my opinions were appreciated. I was made redundant because the company changed direction. This was handled with compassion and support throughout, including conversations and assistance for what I may do next. I cannot fault the way my redundancy was handled.
I realise that there are some negative reviews on here. I believe these stem from personality/role clashes: the team is small and consists of people who care about the success of the company and of individual tasks, which can result in stress - not through the fault of anyone in particular, but rather because it can get stressful when deadlines loom and because there is a great deal of care about the quality of the work completed. When a deadline is near, the team pulls together and supports each other to get the work done but I appreciate that a level of urgency can make some feel that they are being rushed. I did not however; on the contrary, I always felt part of a great team working to achieve our goals. I always felt able to discuss ideas, concerns and plans with management and always felt appreciated.
The directors put a lot of effort into making a supportive, friendly work environment and ensuring there are some great staff benefits, which are also discussed and voted on with the entire team before implementing to ensure they are useful. Benefits include share options, paid volunteer days, railcards, National Art Passes and access to the Mindful Employer scheme - implemented during lockdown to support staff further with any mental health difficulties/lockdown stress. There are also smaller perks like replenished biscuits, cakes and fruit in the office and the odd treat lunch in or out of the office (pizza lunches or bacon butty brunches were pretty regular before lockdown 1 when we had our team meetings).
Since the first lockdown, home-working has been managed successfully with the use of communication channels. I never felt lonely as there were meetings, chats and remote cups of tea which kept everyone in touch. Zipabout have a flexible approach so that people attend the office a few times a week where possible (COVID-guideline dependent), so that ideas can be shared more easily and people can keep in touch. Working time can be discussed with HR: if you need to amend hours/work more flexibly, for instance to pick children up from school, then that's fine.
There are often team dinners and other events (many online quizzes were had during lockdown!) but there is no 'forced-fun' so you never feel compelled to attend if you'd rather not. Having said that, the entire team usually does attend events, which I think shows that people enjoy working at Zipabout and the company of the team and directors.
Depending on the role, if you don't have experience of managing deadlines successfully then perhaps this isn't the right company for you but I'm pretty sure this is the norm in most companies! If you ever did have any concerns, my advice would be to just discuss it with the directors/HR, who will strive to support you in any way they can. If you are lucky enough to join the team then I'm sure you'll find an interesting role, working to make life easier for public-transport users (a worthwhile thing to work towards!) and a group of lovely people who care about the success of the company and of their employees.
Cons
If it gets busy, you may feel that you need to work longer hours but this is not a requirement. If there is urgent work to do, you can take time back if needed, just ask.
If there are face-to-face meetings, you may need to travel and (rarely) stay elsewhere overnight but this is role-dependent.
