Cambridge Computer is Growing!

As we celebrate 30+ years of success, Cambridge Computer is setting even higher goals for the future! The proliferation of data storage, infrastructure, security and cloud technologies is dominating industry news and creating demand for our expertise and experience. We continue to grow and anticipate another exciting and profitable year. Would you like to be a part of our success?

Our clients include some of the largest corporations, the top universities, medical, and research institutions, bioinformatics and pharmaceutical organizations, and the biggest hardware and software manufacturers. We are headquartered in Waltham MA, with field offices in over a dozen other states so we can service the entire USA.

Our CTO, industry analysts, and technologists regularly speak at conferences and give educational lectures all across the country. A large majority of people in leadership and management positions in the company started entry level or early in their careers and grew up along with us. We are looking for talented and energetic individuals to invest in so we can grow even further. We’re committed to training and education and welcome both experienced and entry-level candidates.

Despite our success and growth, we have not allowed our way of business to be “commodity-ized” (that’s not a real word, but hopefully you get the point). Instead, we are successful because we stay dynamic and flexible and focused on the needs of our clients. That means we cannot just hire anybody. We want to recruit people who will like our way of working, who will find our entrepreneurial environment stimulating and challenging, and who have the natural inclination to step up to the plate and become leaders.

Our underlying business model is sound and proven. The infrastructure is in place. The most important challenge ahead of us is finding the right people and scaling up our organization at an aggressive, yet responsible pace. So read on, contact us, get hired, grow tremendously in your career, and live happily ever after. It’s that simple!

Equal Opportunity Employer

Cambridge Computer provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty, military service, or veteran status in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws. Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is IllegalCambridge Computer’s EEO Policy.

If you need assistance or an accommodation during the application process because of a disability, it is available upon request (Phone: 781-250-3000, Mail: Cambridge Computer, Attn: Recruiting, 271 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite 400, Waltham, MA 02452). The company is pleased to provide such assistance, and no applicant will be penalized as a result of such a request.​

Experienced Candidates

This section is for candidates who have two or more years of full-time professional work experience. If you are finishing college or graduate school, or did so within the last two years, please see our Entry-Level Candidates section below.

Cambridge Computer is always looking for talented individuals who can share their wealth of past experiences with our organization. We are particularly interested in people with experience in the information technology industry and we are open to hiring individuals without industry-specific experience who can demonstrate a willingness to learn, good attitude, valuable skill set, and compelling reason for wanting to transition.

Currently Available Positions

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How To Apply

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How To Apply

Please see “Currently Available Positions” for our current openings. If you wish to further differentiate yourself, consider also sending us a hard copy of your application materials to Cambridge Computer, Attn: Hiring, 271 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite 400, Waltham, MA 02452. The extra effort will definitely get noticed.

We are very flexible about exact roles and try to accommodate each individual’s need for challenge, diversity of experience, compensation, and lifestyle.

Please do not send original materials as we cannot guarantee their return.

If you have ever processed resumes before, you know what a drag it is to hear about how people “utilized this” or “spearheaded that.” Skip the formalities and really tell us about yourself. We are primarily interested in knowing:

  • Your current career objectives
  • What attracted you to our company and how you found out about us
  • What experiences you have that you feel are relevant to working with us
  • Any experiences you have working in the technology and storage arena
  • Your salary requirements
  • Your travel restrictions

If you are changing careers or have worked in a single industry (other than technology) for the majority of your professional life, please take the extra time to detail how you feel your past experience and responsibilities will translate into a new industry and the motivations for your change. The more details you can provide, the more effort we can put into envisioning a role for you in our organization.

Entry-Level Candidates

This section is for candidates who are just finishing college or graduate school or who have less than two years of full-time professional work experience. We have entry-level positions with significant growth opportunities in all facets of our business and we need to recruit the best and brightest to keep pace with our opportunities. If you are a dynamic, motivated individual without the significant work experience who feels up to the challenge of a lifetime, we invite you to apply.

Meet the Team

Deena Berton, CEO, and Jacob Farmer, CTO, started Cambridge Computer in 1991. Both of them ​realized during their brief encounters with “Corporate America”​ that they were not cut out to work in large organizations so with little more than a credit card and creativity, Deena and Jacob started​ ​their own business at the ​ripe old ​age of 24. And here they are today, continuing to grow the company into a larger organization, but still retain its small business charm and ​entrepreneurial spirit. ​

We are lucky to have a team of people who have worked together for many years, providing a consistency of leadership and management that is unusual in the IT industry. The majority of leadership has grown up in the company from entry-level positions or transitioned in after working with us in other capacities over the years. It is this brain trust who mentor and train our future generations of leaders. Our ​team ​currently live​s​ in 19 state​s, having hailed from all over the US and a handful of foreign countries, providing a diverse culture and environment.

Our Alma Maters are schools from around the US including a lot of northeast favorites like Babson College, Berkeley College of Music, Boston College, Boston University, Bowdoin, Brandeis, Brown, Colby, Roger Williams​, ​Smith, MIT, Northeastern and Harvard as well as institutions across the country like Georgetown, James Madison University, Rutgers, Oberlin, Purdue, RPI, and St. Lawrence including the big state university systems of Minnesota, New York, Massachusetts, Colorado, Florida​, Pennsylvania, and California.​

Please take a moment to learn a bit more about ​our company, culture, and career opportunities ​by perusing this website.

What's Different About Us?

When Cambridge Computer was founded in 1991, Jacob and Deena were in their early 20s, so they inherently believed that natural abilities and hard work were valid substitutes for age and experience. They learned by trial and error when the stakes were high, and relied on self-teaching, teamwork, logic, and lots of hard work.

Today, the company has a nationwide (and occasionally, worldwide) reach and a stellar reputation. We have a who’s who of customers spanning virtually every industry. We built a stable and successful company, so we’re not afraid to allow our employees as much responsibility as they can handle, regardless of age or experience. Our new recruits are given opportunities to develop their abilities and test their limits.

What We Offer

  • Challenge
  • Trial and error learning
  • Responsibility, ownership, and leadership opportunities
  • Variety

Challenge
A job that capitalizes on your skills and presents meaningful personal challenges. We believe in encouraging our employees to work on their weaknesses and new areas as well. For example, we hired a CS major with advanced coding skills, but encouraged him to develop the business skills that he wanted to develop instead of slating him into a programming job.

Trial and Error Learning
There is no better way to learn. We are not afraid to allow employees to make mistakes as long as they can handle the feedback and learn from their experiences. We emphasize learning by doing and hands-on experimentation over formal training. It is a more expensive and time-consuming way to learn, but one that quickly produces practical expertise.

Responsibility, Ownership, and Leadership Opportunities
Compared to “Corporate America,” CCS has relatively little hierarchy and the attendant politics and waste that go along with it. We have an approachable management team and a corresponding leadership structure based on a concept we call Dynamic Leadership. Each person in the company has special skills and experience in particular fields. Thus, each person is given areas of project ownership and unique responsibilities in those areas of expertise. Similarly, when a project is others' realm of expertise, they become the leader and other employees work under their direction. This allows everyone a chance to develop leadership skills, as well as project and people management experience. It also creates a healthy team atmosphere.

Variety
Few positions can offer you the variety that you will find at Cambridge Computer. We are a small entrepreneurial company, and thus, must all be flexible and diverse. Our whole company strategy is organized around leveraging our expertise in as many ways as possible. Our storage consultants work on projects that include anything from hands-on field work, training, project management, course development, and documentation to technical support and customer service.

Things to Ponder

OK, so you graduated. Now what?

Below are some questions to consider when trying to decide what you want to do. We most likely will ask you some version of these questions in an interview, and would hope that you would be able to answer them honestly, and not just feed us a line.

What kinds of interactions do you want to have?
There are all kinds of people in the working world. Would you want to work with businesspeople, technical people, artistic people? Do you want to deal with executives, business owners, upper management, or people in the field? Do you want to spend money? Do you want to sell? Do you like working on the phone? Giving presentations?

What skills do you want to learn?
In the business world, there are all kinds of skills to have: financial, strategic, marketing, sales, management, computer, even people. What are your strengths? What areas might you like to improve? What skills do you want to develop?

What level of decision making to you want to achieve?
Decisions, decisions, decisions. What level of challenge are you looking for? How accountable do you want to be? What is at stake for you when you make a decision?

What level of leadership do you want to achieve?
Do you want to manage others? Do you want to be managed, and if so, to what level of detail? If management is a goal for you, what kind of manager do you want to be? Do you want to direct people at a detailed level, or set general goals and help your staff along? Do you want to manage a team of peers, or a team of underlings? What would be a fair measure of your success as a manager? What criteria would you use to evaluate those people you managed?

What level of accountability do you want?
Some people are only motivated when the project bears their names. A low level of accountability usually means that you are a helper and if something goes wrong, someone will come in and help you solve the problem or solve the problem for you. A high level of accountability means that you will be that someone who has to solve the problem.

How much exposure to technology do you want?
In the computer industry, this is a particularly important question. To what degree do you want to know technology? Do you want to know what it does, or how it does it? Do you need to know how to run it, or simply how it is run? Do you like to be challenged with technology, or is it just something you need to know at a minimal level to do the rest of your job? Would you rather know a little about a lot of things or would you like to know a few things in-depth? Do you feel confident when you know only a little about something or do you need to know everything about something to feel knowledgeable?

Do you like working on a team or prefer working alone?
This is the question every interviewer asks! The official answer is that you are happy either way, you can work well on teams, but you are self-sufficient and happy defining your own work. As you spout out that answer, think about how you really feel about teamwork and independence.

Are you comfortable working by yourself? Are you able to meet deadlines and maintain quality without others against whose work you can benchmark your performance? If you like working on teams, what kind of people do you work well with? What role would you want on the team? How do you feel when others on the team drop the ball? How would that affect your happiness and productivity?

FAQs

Here are some common questions (and answers) about the application process and working at Cambridge Computer.

What are the compensation and benefit plans like at Cambridge Computer?
Cambridge Computer offers competitive salaries, and compensation plans for experienced individuals are commensurate with industry standards. Most positions offer opportunities to participate in either team-based or individual commission and variable compensation plans.

Our benefits package includes health and dental insurance, a 401(k) plan with employer matching, standard paid holidays, Flexible Spending Account (FSA),long-term disability insurance, paid time off, and discounted health club membership.

Do I need a car?
Most employees do need to have daily access to a car in order to go to sales meetings or to work on-site for customers. Please ask if you are unsure whether a particular position requires access to a vehicle.

Where is the office located?
Cambridge Computer is headquartered in Waltham, MA. Waltham is located just northwest of Boston and is near Route 128, Route 2, and the Mass Pike.

What kinds of people do we hire?
Smart, friendly, technology savvy people. We like aggressive self-starters, but we also like team players who know how to get along with others.

How long has the company been in business?
We were incorporated in July 1991.

How big is the company?
We have approximately 70 people. Half of our people are based out of the company headquarters in Waltham. We also have remote employees who are based across the United States.

What is the stock symbol?
Someday we may have one! For now we are a privately held company.

When would I start work if hired?
We hire on a rolling-admissions basis year-round. We do not believe in rushing people to work. If you need to chill out and have a little fun before starting work, we will do our best to accommodate that.

What is the dress code?
Our work environment is business casual 90% of the time. Jeans are OK on Fridays, but during the week we expect a level of professionalism surrounding our employee’s attire.

What are the stages in the recruiting process?
It does vary from candidate to candidate, but this is roughly it:
1. Introduction
We learn a little about you, you learn a little about us. Maybe you decide to apply.

2. Application
You send us the required application materials.

3. Email/Phone Q&A
We will probably have some questions for you and vice versa.

4. Interview or Ding
We either invite you to interview with us (in Waltham or at your school), or we let you how wonderful we think you are, but that you don't seem right for us.

5. Second Interview
Unless you convinced us up front that you are perfect for our team.

6. We check your references
So please make sure you provide some.

7. Offer or Ding
We make an offer for a specific position, or begin discussing a job we could design for you. Or we send you one of those letters described above.
How many positions are available?
This is really a function of how many people we meet who will fit in well here. We are always interested in hearing from qualified candidates. We do not set limits on the number of positions that we plan to fill.

Do you hire foreign students?
We are very open to hiring foreign students and have done so numerous times in the past.

Can I submit artwork or writing samples with my application?
Please do! Receiving additional materials with your application helps us to get to know you better and gives us a much better understanding of your skill set and interests. However, please do not send original works as we cannot guarantee their return. (If you have original items only, you can always bring them to an interview.)

If you have a question not answered here or elsewhere in the site, please contact us.

Career Paths

The career path for folks with limited working experience begins with a supporting role in one of three groups within Cambridge Computer:

Sales Support
These positions manage communications and relationships among clients, vendors, and Cambridge Computer. You will coordinate internal resources, handle vendor relationships and reporting, and help clients identify the right products to buy. You will do this by, among other things, writing proposals, specifying technical purchases, and brokering technical information. A role in this group allows you to learn the inner workings of the computer industry and enables you to progressively develop more technical specialization, thereby enabling you to develop into a technical consulting or sales position.

Technical Specialist
Entry-level candidates with Bachelors or Masters in STEM subjects often enter directly into Technical Specialist positions or spend a shorter time in our Sales Support Team and then become Technical Specialists. Technical Specialists support the sales organization with product and technology research and analysis; proposal and bid responses; and specifying technical solutions. They develop competencies in many areas of technology but often specialize in one or two areas in a more concentrated way so they can be leveraged as Subject Matter Experts in a particular field on client projects. These are great stepping stone positions to technology sales and consulting positions as well as solution architecture positions.

Business Operations
These positions expose you to the daily business and financial operations of a growing technology company. You will work directly with the controller and a small team of colleagues to manage invoicing and accounts receivable, administer human-resource benefits, assist in financial reporting, source and purchase IT products and services, approve and process accounts payable, and provide exceptional customer service to both our internal and external clients. A role in this group is like a survey course on running a technology company because we are small enough that everyone on the team gets great exposure to all facets of what we do, yet large enough that we are dealing with quite a high volume of challenging work.

Professional Services
These positions expose you to a small and experienced team of specialists that provide strategic IT consulting and deployment of enterprise-grade IT products. You will work directly with our clients, vendors, and other team members to research, identify, and install and upgrade IT systems in data centers across the USA. A role in this group allows you to develop a nuts-and-bolts understanding of the newest IT products that run Fortune 500 companies, major Universities, and cutting-edge research institutions. It is less common for folks with limited work experience to join this group, but we have found it can be a good fit for those with prior IT and data center experience.

The above paths are what we typically see. However, we've been pleasantly surprised over the years to have people follow totally unplanned paths within the company. One person who was working in our Operations Team recently transitioned to our Technical Specialist Team -- he built skills over time that made it easy to make that move. Another person moved from our Sales Support Team almost immediately to our Professional Services Team -- a very unlikely move, but he was a unique talent for whom it made sense.

As a small company with intimately involved senior managers, we strive to help people rise at their own pace. The above scenarios are guides to what we often see but are not carved in stone.

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How To Apply

Since recent graduates often have limited professional experience, our application requirements are a little more rigorous. Instead of reviewing what you have done, we want to try to figure out what you are capable of doing.

More specifically, we want to get a sense of what you’re like, where you want to go in life, what you are capable of, what motivates you, etc., so that we can design a position for you that will maximize your happiness and our success rate in hiring.

We are very committed to the careers of our college recruits, and want to see them succeed with us and wherever their goals may take them afterwards. That’s not always an easy commitment to uphold, but we are dedicated to making working for Cambridge Computer a positive experience.

Please see "Currently Available Positions" for a list of our current openings. If you wish to further differentiate yourself, consider also sending us a hard copy of your application materials to Cambridge Computer, Attn: Hiring, 271 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite 400, Waltham, MA 02452. The extra effort will definitely get noticed.

Required Application Materials

Mission Statement
A one paragraph or more statement, as detailed or generic as is appropriate for your personality. Pick a point in time—2 years, 5 years, 10 years from now—and tell us what you want to have accomplished by that time and where you want to be headed. Try not to get corny, and don’t feel that we're going to judge you harshly on your answer.

Do you want to be a leader? Do you want to be really good at one thing, pretty good at many things, master of everything? Do you want to be creative? Do you want to be rich?
How rich? How do you want to get there? Do you want to go back to school? Do you want to be self-employed? What do you need or want to accomplish before your next move?

By the way, “I don’t know” is a valid answer, but try to tell us why you don’t know. Finally, please do not make a big deal of this; 20 minutes should do it.

Transcript
We do not weigh this too heavily unless your transcript makes a heavy statement. All A’s in graduate-level classes, and we’ll be impressed. C’s in guts, and we question. If there are any major blemishes on your transcript, feel free to attach a page explaining them. The ability to make good excuses for bad grades, while not as impressive as the ability to make good grades, is a skill that we can appreciate!

Cover Letter and Resume
Please provide a formal cover letter and resume.

Let Us Know You're Paying Attention
We're looking for folks that take the time to read all of the directions for a given task. If you're one of those rare applicants that takes the time to read this section, please let us know in your cover letter by telling us your favorite René Magritte work of art.

Optional Application Materials Recommendations
If you have professor or dean recommendations, then please send them. Ultimately, we will need to check references before making a job offer.

Writing Samples and Other Supporting Documentation
Please feel free to submit writing samples, particularly if the subject matter is interesting or at least not dreadfully boring! Please do not send original materials as we cannot promise to return items submitted.

Anything Else
Don't be shy. Your mission is to convince us that you are the right candidate for the job. Anything that reflects positively on you will be reviewed and considered relevant. (Remember, please do not send original materials that you wish returned.)

A Little Hint About Emailing Your Application Materials
Email is an expeditious way to communicate, not a precise or particularly elegant way. Email systems all work differently, and what looks like a nice email letter on your screen might look like crud on your potential employer's screen. Also, when some people read email, they skim it quickly and then hit *delete* when they are bored--or even sometimes by accident. We don't accept Emailed application materials, so please don't send them.

How to Follow Up
We endeavor to reply to all candidates who take the time to remit complete materials, however we are unable to reply to people who don't apply according to our instructions. If you haven't heard from us within three weeks of applying, please contact us by email to follow up.

How Not To Apply

This page is provided for the benefit of people who do not actually want to get a job offer from us, but for some unknown reason feel compelled to send us application materials anyway.

Every year we get hundreds of half-baked applications. Either materials are missing, or the applications come in poorly formatted. The message this sends to us is either that these people do not really want a job with us, or that their presentation skills and ability to follow instructions are so poor that we could never hire them.

We understand that finding the right job is a lot of work and it is tempting to blast your resume out to as many companies as possible in the hopes that one of them might consider hiring you. This method is a fine way to solve certain kinds of problems, but not a job search.

To cut to the chase, these are things you can do to ensure that we will not consider you for a position with us:

Applying the Wrong Way
We are looking for you to submit an application through our online application system. Attention to detail and direction is crucial in our business. If you wish to further differentiate yourself, consider also sending us a hard copy of your application materials to Cambridge Computer, Attn: Hiring, 271 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite 400, Waltham, MA 02452. The extra effort will definitely get noticed.

Misspell Things on Your Resume
Even before spell checkers it was considered lame to send out a resume containing spelling errors.

Leave Out Application Materials
We do not grant interviews without a resume, cover letter, copy of transcript, and a mission statement.

Deena Berton, CEO, and Jacob Farmer, CTO, started Cambridge Computer in 1991. Both of them ​realized during their brief encounters with “Corporate America”​ that they were not cut out to work in large organizations so with little more than a credit card and creativity, Deena and Jacob started​ ​their own business at the ​ripe old ​age of 24. And here they are today, continuing to grow the company into a larger organization, but still retain its small business charm and ​entrepreneurial spirit. ​

We are lucky to have a team of people who have worked together for many years, providing a consistency of leadership and management that is unusual in the IT industry. The majority of leadership has grown up in the company from entry-level positions or transitioned in after working with us in other capacities over the years. It is this brain trust who mentor and train our future generations of leaders. Our ​team ​currently live​s​ in 19 state​s, having hailed from all over the US and a handful of foreign countries, providing a diverse culture and environment.

Our Alma Maters are schools from around the US including a lot of northeast favorites like Babson College, Berkeley College of Music, Boston College, Boston University, Bowdoin, Brandeis, Brown, Colby, Roger Williams​, ​Smith, MIT, Northeastern and Harvard as well as institutions across the country like Georgetown, James Madison University, Rutgers, Oberlin, Purdue, RPI, and St. Lawrence including the big state university systems of Minnesota, New York, Massachusetts, Colorado, Florida​, Pennsylvania, and California.​

Please take a moment to learn a bit more about ​our company, culture, and career opportunities ​by perusing this website.

When Cambridge Computer was founded in 1991, Jacob and Deena were in their early 20s, so they inherently believed that natural abilities and hard work were valid substitutes for age and experience. They learned by trial and error when the stakes were high, and relied on self-teaching, teamwork, logic, and lots of hard work.

Today, the company has a nationwide (and occasionally, worldwide) reach and a stellar reputation. We have a who’s who of customers spanning virtually every industry. We built a stable and successful company, so we’re not afraid to allow our employees as much responsibility as they can handle, regardless of age or experience. Our new recruits are given opportunities to develop their abilities and test their limits.

What We Offer

  • Challenge
  • Trial and error learning
  • Responsibility, ownership, and leadership opportunities
  • Variety

Challenge
A job that capitalizes on your skills and presents meaningful personal challenges. We believe in encouraging our employees to work on their weaknesses and new areas as well. For example, we hired a CS major with advanced coding skills, but encouraged him to develop the business skills that he wanted to develop instead of slating him into a programming job.

Trial and Error Learning
There is no better way to learn. We are not afraid to allow employees to make mistakes as long as they can handle the feedback and learn from their experiences. We emphasize learning by doing and hands-on experimentation over formal training. It is a more expensive and time-consuming way to learn, but one that quickly produces practical expertise.

Responsibility, Ownership, and Leadership Opportunities
Compared to “Corporate America,” CCS has relatively little hierarchy and the attendant politics and waste that go along with it. We have an approachable management team and a corresponding leadership structure based on a concept we call Dynamic Leadership. Each person in the company has special skills and experience in particular fields. Thus, each person is given areas of project ownership and unique responsibilities in those areas of expertise. Similarly, when a project is others' realm of expertise, they become the leader and other employees work under their direction. This allows everyone a chance to develop leadership skills, as well as project and people management experience. It also creates a healthy team atmosphere.

Variety
Few positions can offer you the variety that you will find at Cambridge Computer. We are a small entrepreneurial company, and thus, must all be flexible and diverse. Our whole company strategy is organized around leveraging our expertise in as many ways as possible. Our storage consultants work on projects that include anything from hands-on field work, training, project management, course development, and documentation to technical support and customer service.

OK, so you graduated. Now what?

Below are some questions to consider when trying to decide what you want to do. We most likely will ask you some version of these questions in an interview, and would hope that you would be able to answer them honestly, and not just feed us a line.

What kinds of interactions do you want to have?
There are all kinds of people in the working world. Would you want to work with businesspeople, technical people, artistic people? Do you want to deal with executives, business owners, upper management, or people in the field? Do you want to spend money? Do you want to sell? Do you like working on the phone? Giving presentations?

What skills do you want to learn?
In the business world, there are all kinds of skills to have: financial, strategic, marketing, sales, management, computer, even people. What are your strengths? What areas might you like to improve? What skills do you want to develop?

What level of decision making to you want to achieve?
Decisions, decisions, decisions. What level of challenge are you looking for? How accountable do you want to be? What is at stake for you when you make a decision?

What level of leadership do you want to achieve?
Do you want to manage others? Do you want to be managed, and if so, to what level of detail? If management is a goal for you, what kind of manager do you want to be? Do you want to direct people at a detailed level, or set general goals and help your staff along? Do you want to manage a team of peers, or a team of underlings? What would be a fair measure of your success as a manager? What criteria would you use to evaluate those people you managed?

What level of accountability do you want?
Some people are only motivated when the project bears their names. A low level of accountability usually means that you are a helper and if something goes wrong, someone will come in and help you solve the problem or solve the problem for you. A high level of accountability means that you will be that someone who has to solve the problem.

How much exposure to technology do you want?
In the computer industry, this is a particularly important question. To what degree do you want to know technology? Do you want to know what it does, or how it does it? Do you need to know how to run it, or simply how it is run? Do you like to be challenged with technology, or is it just something you need to know at a minimal level to do the rest of your job? Would you rather know a little about a lot of things or would you like to know a few things in-depth? Do you feel confident when you know only a little about something or do you need to know everything about something to feel knowledgeable?

Do you like working on a team or prefer working alone?
This is the question every interviewer asks! The official answer is that you are happy either way, you can work well on teams, but you are self-sufficient and happy defining your own work. As you spout out that answer, think about how you really feel about teamwork and independence.

Are you comfortable working by yourself? Are you able to meet deadlines and maintain quality without others against whose work you can benchmark your performance? If you like working on teams, what kind of people do you work well with? What role would you want on the team? How do you feel when others on the team drop the ball? How would that affect your happiness and productivity?

Here are some common questions (and answers) about the application process and working at Cambridge Computer.

What are the compensation and benefit plans like at Cambridge Computer?
Cambridge Computer offers competitive salaries, and compensation plans for experienced individuals are commensurate with industry standards. Most positions offer opportunities to participate in either team-based or individual commission and variable compensation plans.

Our benefits package includes health and dental insurance, a 401(k) plan with employer matching, standard paid holidays, Flexible Spending Account (FSA),long-term disability insurance, paid time off, and discounted health club membership.

Do I need a car?
Most employees do need to have daily access to a car in order to go to sales meetings or to work on-site for customers. Please ask if you are unsure whether a particular position requires access to a vehicle.

Where is the office located?
Cambridge Computer is headquartered in Waltham, MA. Waltham is located just northwest of Boston and is near Route 128, Route 2, and the Mass Pike.

What kinds of people do we hire?
Smart, friendly, technology savvy people. We like aggressive self-starters, but we also like team players who know how to get along with others.

How long has the company been in business?
We were incorporated in July 1991.

How big is the company?
We have approximately 70 people. Half of our people are based out of the company headquarters in Waltham. We also have remote employees who are based across the United States.

What is the stock symbol?
Someday we may have one! For now we are a privately held company.

When would I start work if hired?
We hire on a rolling-admissions basis year-round. We do not believe in rushing people to work. If you need to chill out and have a little fun before starting work, we will do our best to accommodate that.

What is the dress code?
Our work environment is business casual 90% of the time. Jeans are OK on Fridays, but during the week we expect a level of professionalism surrounding our employee’s attire.

What are the stages in the recruiting process?
It does vary from candidate to candidate, but this is roughly it:
1. Introduction
We learn a little about you, you learn a little about us. Maybe you decide to apply.

2. Application
You send us the required application materials (listed on the "How to Apply" page).

3. Email/Phone Q&A
We will probably have some questions for you and vice versa.

4. Interview or Ding
We either invite you to interview with us (in Waltham or at your school), or we let you know how wonderful we think you are, but that you don't seem right for us.

5. Second Interview
Unless you convinced us up front that you are perfect for our team.

6. We check your references
So please make sure you provide some.

7. Offer or Ding
We make an offer for a specific position, or begin discussing a job we could design for you. Or we send you one of those letters described above.
How many positions are available?
This is really a function of how many people we meet who will fit in well here. We are always interested in hearing from qualified candidates. We do not set limits on the number of positions that we plan to fill.

Do you hire foreign students?
We are very open to hiring foreign students and have done so numerous times in the past.

Can I submit artwork or writing samples with my application?
Please do! Receiving additional materials with your application helps us to get to know you better and gives us a much better understanding of your skill set and interests. However, please do not send original works as we cannot guarantee their return. (If you have original items only, you can always bring them to an interview.)

If you have a question not answered here or elsewhere in the site, please contact us.

Since recent graduates often have limited professional experience, our application requirements are a little more rigorous. Instead of reviewing what you have done, we want to try to figure out what you are capable of doing.

More specifically, we want to get a sense of what you’re like, where you want to go in life, what you are capable of, what motivates you, etc., so that we can design a position for you that will maximize your happiness and our success rate in hiring.

We are very committed to the careers of our college recruits, and want to see them succeed with us and wherever their goals may take them afterwards. That’s not always an easy commitment to uphold, but we are dedicated to making working for Cambridge Computer a positive experience.

Please see "Currently Available Positions" for a list of our current openings. If you wish to further differentiate yourself, consider also sending us a hard copy of your application materials to Cambridge Computer, Attn: Hiring, 271 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite 400, Waltham, MA 02452. The extra effort will definitely get noticed.

Required Application Materials

Mission Statement
A one paragraph or more statement, as detailed or generic as is appropriate for your personality. Pick a point in time—2 years, 5 years, 10 years from now—and tell us what you want to have accomplished by that time and where you want to be headed. Try not to get corny, and don’t feel that we're going to judge you harshly on your answer.

Do you want to be a leader? Do you want to be really good at one thing, pretty good at many things, master of everything? Do you want to be creative? Do you want to be rich?
How rich? How do you want to get there? Do you want to go back to school? Do you want to be self-employed? What do you need or want to accomplish before your next move?

By the way, “I don’t know” is a valid answer, but try to tell us why you don’t know. Finally, please do not make a big deal of this; 20 minutes should do it.

Transcript
We do not weigh this too heavily unless your transcript makes a heavy statement. All A’s in graduate-level classes, and we’ll be impressed. C’s in guts, and we question. If there are any major blemishes on your transcript, feel free to attach a page explaining them. The ability to make good excuses for bad grades, while not as impressive as the ability to make good grades, is a skill that we can appreciate!

Cover Letter and Resume
Please provide a formal cover letter and resume.

Let Us Know You're Paying Attention
We're looking for folks that take the time to read all of the directions for a given task. If you're one of those rare applicants that takes the time to read this section, please let us know in your cover letter by telling us your favorite René Magritte work of art.

Optional Application Materials Recommendations
If you have professor or dean recommendations, then please send them. Ultimately, we will need to check references before making a job offer.

Writing Samples and Other Supporting Documentation
Please feel free to submit writing samples, particularly if the subject matter is interesting or at least not dreadfully boring! Please do not send original materials as we cannot promise to return items submitted.

Anything Else
Don't be shy. Your mission is to convince us that you are the right candidate for the job. Anything that reflects positively on you will be reviewed and considered relevant. (Remember, please do not send original materials that you wish returned.)

A Little Hint About Emailing Your Application Materials
Email is an expeditious way to communicate, not a precise or particularly elegant way. Email systems all work differently, and what looks like a nice email letter on your screen might look like crud on your potential employer's screen. Also, when some people read email, they skim it quickly and then hit *delete* when they are bored--or even sometimes by accident. We don't accept Emailed application materials, so please don't send them.

How to Follow Up
We endeavor to reply to all candidates who take the time to remit complete materials, however we are unable to reply to people who don't apply according to our instructions. If you haven't heard from us within three weeks of applying, please contact us by email to follow up.

The career path for folks with limited working experience begins with a supporting role in one of three groups within Cambridge Computer:

Sales Support
These positions manage communications and relationships among clients, vendors, and Cambridge Computer. You will coordinate internal resources, handle vendor relationships and reporting, and help clients identify the right products to buy. You will do this by, among other things, writing proposals, specifying technical purchases, and brokering technical information. A role in this group allows you to learn the inner workings of the computer industry and enables you to progressively develop more technical specialization, thereby enabling you to develop into a technical consulting or sales position.

Technical Specialist
Entry-level candidates with Bachelors or Masters in STEM subjects often enter directly into Technical Specialist positions or spend a shorter time in our Sales Support Team and then become Technical Specialists. Technical Specialists support the sales organization with product and technology research and analysis; proposal and bid responses; and specifying technical solutions. They develop competencies in many areas of technology but often specialize in one or two areas in a more concentrated way so they can be leveraged as Subject Matter Experts in a particular field on client projects. These are great stepping stone positions to technology sales and consulting positions as well as solution architecture positions.

Business Operations
These positions expose you to the daily business and financial operations of a growing technology company. You will work directly with the controller and a small team of colleagues to manage invoicing and accounts receivable, administer human-resource benefits, assist in financial reporting, source and purchase IT products and services, approve and process accounts payable, and provide exceptional customer service to both our internal and external clients. A role in this group is like a survey course on running a technology company because we are small enough that everyone on the team gets great exposure to all facets of what we do, yet large enough that we are dealing with quite a high volume of challenging work.

Professional Services
These positions expose you to a small and experienced team of specialists that provide strategic IT consulting and deployment of enterprise-grade IT products. You will work directly with our clients, vendors, and other team members to research, identify, and install and upgrade IT systems in data centers across the USA. A role in this group allows you to develop a nuts-and-bolts understanding of the newest IT products that run Fortune 500 companies, major Universities, and cutting-edge research institutions. It is less common for folks with limited work experience to join this group, but we have found it can be a good fit for those with prior IT and data center experience.

The above paths are what we typically see. However, we've been pleasantly surprised over the years to have people follow totally unplanned paths within the company. One person who was working in our Operations Team recently transitioned to our Technical Specialist Team -- he built skills over time that made it easy to make that move. Another person moved from our Sales Support Team almost immediately to our Professional Services Team -- a very unlikely move, but he was a unique talent for whom it made sense.

As a small company with intimately involved senior managers, we strive to help people rise at their own pace. The above scenarios are guides to what we often see but are not carved in stone.

This page is provided for the benefit of people who do not actually want to get a job offer from us, but for some unknown reason feel compelled to send us application materials anyway.

Every year we get hundreds of half-baked applications. Either materials are missing, or the applications come in poorly formatted. The message this sends to us is either that these people do not really want a job with us, or that their presentation skills and ability to follow instructions are so poor that we could never hire them.

We understand that finding the right job is a lot of work and it is tempting to blast your resume out to as many companies as possible in the hopes that one of them might consider hiring you. This method is a fine way to solve certain kinds of problems, but not a job search.

To cut to the chase, these are things you can do to ensure that we will not consider you for a position with us:

Applying the Wrong Way
We are looking for you to submit an application through our online application system. Attention to detail and direction is crucial in our business. If you wish to further differentiate yourself, consider also sending us a hard copy of your application materials to Cambridge Computer, Attn: Hiring, 271 Waverley Oaks Road, Suite 400, Waltham, MA 02452. The extra effort will definitely get noticed.

Misspell Things on Your Resume
Even before spell checkers it was considered lame to send out a resume containing spelling errors.

Leave Out Application Materials
We do not grant interviews without a resume, cover letter, copy of transcript, and a mission statement.