| Manufacturing Engineer (Manufacturing Engineering Manager) |
This company (est: ~1976) is an "old school" Mom & Pop shop that oh so
desperately wants to believe that it is a corporation on par with
other named aerospace firms. The culture is one of mild to severe
dysfunction; Mom (board member); spies on the comings and goings of
salaried personnel, writing little (3-part) notes and making snide
comments if she feels the company is not getting its pound of flesh,
regardless of whether or not projects and functional areas are running
smoothly and all deadlines are met, and despite that one had worked
through lunch and / or typically works 45 hours weekly. DOL (Department
of Labor) investigation is on-going. Pop (ex-CEO, VP of Sales and
sometimes Acting Engineering Manager); likes to imagine himself
possessing the embodiment of all knowledge relating to the production
and manufacture of the company products; perhaps when the company only
produced edge-lit panels with switches and knobs, but utterly out of his
element with the advent of computer controlled devices. So much so that
the time-frame to produce these items is the same as to produce
a dummy panel, thereby inducing needless stress onto those actually
doing the design work. His idea of product management is to rail
against and belittle those that dare deem to ask pertinent questions of
design/s elements that were agreed to in the RFQ (request for quote); he
wants / wanted head-bobbers only. Child (CEO); different from Mom and
Pop, but sadly ideologically much the same. She grew up with the
company, working there during summer vacations, part-time and off and on
during college (degree in Sports Medicine, or some such), transitioning
to a full-time placement some time thereafter into the marketing arena
as the Business Development individual, graduating to CEO in January
2002. My point here is the lack of understanding that with change some
people will opt out of the new culture (Change Management), unless, of
course they can persuade management to disavow the change/s; thereby
keeping the company status quo , which happened on too numerous of
occasions. Dont get me wrong, they hire (mostly) people that have the
skills and abilities to help the company progress, but then stifle even
the most modest of agendas to align the company with the late 20th, let
alone the early 21st century. Change scares older (long term)
employees, since change will show that they are woefully behind the
technology curve, or worse it will highlight the fact that they have
been on cruise-control for years and change frightens management to the
point of regression; case in point; ID & C actually pursued the purchase
of a company that manufactured CRT (cathode ray tubes, old style TV
screens), which is tantamount to buying the last buggy-whip or rug-
beater manufacturing company. In stark opposition to the carpet-walkers
(management types, and several staff personnel, but not all) the floor
personnel and many other staff are good, hard workers that try the best
they can with the limited management support they receive. Not all
about this company is dreadful; if one is new to the working world, the
impact of company politics and employee gamesmanship then this company
is one that would be of use as an educational teaching / learning
environment, and / or if toward the end of your career then this company
would allow one to ease into retirement on a somewhat subtle level (most
probably with a nice job-title), and / or as most people (myself
included) that work or worked there mainly on the middle to higher
levels of the company say, I work here because it is close to my
house. For that reason and that being the sole reason alone the time I
spent there (2 ?? years) was well worth the effort expended of me beating
my head against the walls of futility. DIVERSITY: It was mainly a sea
of white in the carpeted areas of the company with one exception, floor
personnel are more diverse in culture/s. HOURS: floor-workers 7:00 -
3:30 with some overtime, office-staff 8:00 - 5:00, salaried-personnel
depends on who you are 7:00 - 5:00, 8:00 - 5:00, 9:00 - 3:00 with either
lots of unpaid overtime or never doing overtime at all and continually
working less than 25 hours a week. It runs the spectrum. DRESS-CODE:
Come as you are, prefer that you dress nice, but have seen jeans,
shorts, sandals, flip-flops, deck shoes, jogging shorts, long-hair
with / without colors, as up-dos, down-dos, high-and-tights, smelling
as if it were required to daily shower in a variety of cheap to
expensive perfumes and colognes, piercings (and multiples thereof),
tattoos - there is a dress code, but again it depends on who you are and
what part of the company you work in. Generally, dress as if you are
going to play golf and you will fit well (Dockers and a golf shirt, with
comfortable shoes, socks and belts optional) If you are lucky enough to
somehow advance to the rank of CEO or become a Board Member you can
bring your flatulent dog to work, along with its shedding hair, dander,
drool-covered toys, flea infestation and all, and be allowed the use of
the common (outside) areas as a personal dog-run, playground and potty,
parking where and as you please to shade the rear of your vehicle,
keeping it cool for the canine to nap in comfort, while blocking
walkways, entryways, roll-up doors, handicap-spaces and fire-lanes.
ADVANCEMENT: Minimal, no established career path/s (and very few
standard position descriptions), possibly a lateral to another area, or
if a new position is created where none existed before, then possibly
one might progress from there. When told you will advance, get it in
writing, signed by the President. CLOSING ADVISE: Keep your on-line
resume as fresh and as current as possible. Maintain nothing personal
and nothing you would want to refer to on your computer, as the lack of
computer when you arrive at work is the first clue that you no longer
work there. If, I work here because it is close to my house , suits
your needs and lifestyle, then this is a place for you too. Understand
this: the current CEO, has great displeasure with the aforementioned
statement, so if you are to interview there, and want a position, do not
utter the following words, "I want to work here because it is close to
my house".
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