ALTEN reviews

No one will ever contact you except to ask for your timesheet. There is no support from management, and you are on your own if the contract customer decides to shift blame to you for their internal issues. I was never given any feedback on my performance (I was often not even given an assignment), and nearly all requests for information from my manager or my customer went unanswered. When I gave my resignation, I was told that I had to provide a month of notice. At the end of that month, they began to argue with me that I should not be paid for time during that month - if they did not want to pay me, why ask for a month of notice? I also was instructed to return my computer, but not given any information on who I should send it to or what address to put on the package... but it was still my responsibility to return it, somehow. I eventually moved on to find a real engineering job, where I would be given work to do rather than kept on a shelf as a potential future scapegoat.

The company lives on hiring underpaid people from abroad (Mexico, India, France & Sweden), so you will get underpaid (there is a reason why so few Americans work for ALTEN USA). They will pay at least 15-20% under market value. At best you will get a 2-3% increase annually, Lately they have implemented a committee (where the managers decide you salary, and you have nothing to say about it). Does not matter if you are a high performer, when the managers want to keep the salary low to get bigger margins for the company. This company needs a union, someone that can fight for the consultants rights. For a “engineering company”, it feels more like a regular staffing company. I don’t think I have seen any business manager that actually have an engineering degree during my time at the company. The managers have at best a business degree and comes directly from school, (they previously experience is mostly: Car sellers, receptionists, golf instructors & insurance). So how these people can in good way present engineers to engineering companies is a mystery, since they probably don´t know more than the resume shows. The management in Greensboro North Carolina, is horrible. Since the managers are not engineers and mostly work as a seller not managers. The goal is always to get you out to first available job that they get. So prepare for it, you will most likely get stuck with something you don’t want to work at. Have several colleagues that have got stuck in this, and when they try to get a new assignment, they get rejected from the business managers until the assignment ends (and that could take years or they quit). The managers mostly focus on the next company trip to some fancy place so they can get some more pictures to their Instagram. It’s a Top-down company, The CEO (in Greensboro) thinks that we are a “Family” and he is “Transparent”. But only CEO to management (since they apparently are too inexperienced to say anything negative to him), The working consultants are in a different opinion. So an open dialog would benefit the company big time. During the COVID-19, The company showed the real face, only the margins are important. Policys and contracts was changed daily and always with a negative impact for the consultants. People was laid off on the day (but in the other way around, we have 30 days notice). According to contracts, consultants on a fixed salary should get a base pay when they are out of work. That did not happen so 0$ in salary, consultants were forced to take unpaid vacation for months. Holiday pay was removed, didn´t matter if you had worked for 5 months before, if you didn´t work the week the holiday was at, you lost the holiday. If you want to have any education, you will need to pay it yourself (you maybe can get it refunded, if the company can prove it is business vital, but they will do everything to not approve it) Stay clear of this company, there is other company that treats their employees better out there!