Avantages
Great place for engineers/scientists to grow their resume in energy, coastal, or water resources. ESS is unique because it's a small, privately owned firm, that works on large, complex, high-profile projects (not a gorilla firm). Employees aren't silo-ed and have the access and opportunity to work with everyone in the company, including corporate-level executives who are industry-veterans and experts in their fields.
Inconvénients
As a small firm working on big, complex projects it can be a challenging environment. There can be burn out, frustration, peaks/valleys in morale, and limitations. Turnover can be high, but that's the industry as a whole. Successful employees have can-do attitudes, roll up their sleeves, and can trouble shoot. As a privately-owned firm decisions aren't always made democratically - that can be good and bad. Bonuses and salary increases are earned, not offered as incentive.