1. A great company is loyal to its employees and inspires loyalty from the employees. CHA is a cheapskate owner. At the time, the employee package (insurance etc.) was very weak. There had been no 401(k) match but years of promising it. The health plan was not very supportive and was going downhill.
2. Again, the company has little loyalty to the employees. At the first sign of financial stress, it cuts headcount. So if you decide to work here, do so with your eyes wide open. You should have no hesitation to take another job if it looks interesting.
3. The company bleeds talent. Good talent moves on, and management says things such as: that person was a disaster; I knew he/she wouldn't stay with us. One wonders why management doesn't try to learn from the losses and change practices to keep its talent, rather than label former colleagues as they leave.
4. Novara leadership has created a rather sick work culture. It was not uncommon to see passive-aggressive behavior from the current president, and this is not conducive to bringing out the best in the team.
5. The business is reliant almost exclusively upon oil and gas and will be no less volatile than that industry, but more-so because of poor management.
6. Too much knowledge is centralized in too few people. There was not an organized effort to spread that knowledge around. Until addressed, this means the business is going to remain brittle.
7. For the most of the team, Novara's work is/was a data "sweat shop" (not my term, by the way). As such, it was not preparing the employees for the rest of their careers.
8. Technical track college graduates earn less here than a plumber or electrician elsewhere. I have to believe you can do better.
