Very low salaries - They like saying people who choose to work at Invoke Labs are people that are "passionate" and "truly motivated". Well let me tell you something; many people in plenty of companies around the world are passionate and motivated in the job they're in without being under-compensated in comparison to the local job market. If you're speaking with a company and they constantly use these words to wave you over compensation discrepancies, take heed. The salaries at Invoke Labs are truly below market.
Very high turnaround - Consider this. The 4~5 person team I was on had 4 different developers (in 1 position) over the span of 10 months. From my time there, this type of thing wasn't just happening on my team. Emails that go like "Effective immediately, ______ _______ will no longer be working here." are a common sight. Out of the people that were there while I was, over half are not there anymore, including the (at the time) newly appointed CEO.
Poor management - There are people there in managerial type roles who are clearly not fit to be in those roles. The type of person who has little understanding of engineering challenges and generates more drama, than they generate good will. Worst of all, the type of person who shifts blame onto other team members and flat out lies to the rest of the company in an effort to not look bad.
About waffles - it seems to be the case that basically everyone in this company that is involved in recruiting uses "Waffle Friday" constantly. Which should make you think: if the biggest sell a company can make to you is weekly waffles, and passionate, motivated people (in exchange for low salary), you should be wondering what is missing.
Cliquey - As has been mentioned by pretty much everyone who has worked there, there are cliques. This is not a natural extension of having small teams. These cliques will determine your success/advancement at Invoke Labs, be it advancement, perceived performance, rumours, etc. If you choose to work at Invoke Labs, I suggest you identify the cliques immediately and find a way to get on their good side.
Work/life balance - Related to the point above, if you mix well with the cliques that matter, your work/life balance will be good. Otherwise, be prepared to have your motivation, passion, and dedication to the company questioned by key members of the clique; and as a result, painting you in a very negative light. Suddenly, good work that you've done will be irrelevant, the hours you put in will not be enough, something you were praised for just yesterday will become a fault, and anything you do will be futile. Since teams are small and most people outside your team will know nothing, whatever the clique claims will be fact.
Stock options/bonuses - Again, everyone else's perception of you is largely controlled by the clique, including your perceived performance. It'll either make your time at Invoke Labs laid back and enjoyable, or miserable. Stock options are also one of the big points Invoke Labs recruiters try to sell you on, but when I was there, options were really only something to help lure you on-board. Once you're in, there will be next to no mention of options, and will be waved off as "we're working on the details" if you bring it up. This may have changed since I quit, but from my understanding, stock options are "still in the works" even till now.
