If you are in any of the periphery businesses at Atkins (i.e. not a core Design & Engineering' area then it very much feels like you are on the sidelines. This means that the experience of being part of the major projects Atkins is renowned for or the more professional career development routes does not get realized.
A key issue when in one of the many periphery businesses is that it is very difficult to get a wide range of experience; i.e. you tend to get drawn into one small team and it is quite difficult to gain a wide range of project experience.
Salary is a key issue at Atkins and there is a serious case of age related hierarchy in much of the business; I was lucky enough to be promoted several times in my time there but it took some serious doing! The vast majority can sit as the same 'grade' for many years with minimal rises when finally promoted. Even when promoted it is hard to surpass their 'Senior' roles without being old enough to 'look the part'. Unlike other places I've worked it all seems to be about time in the role and age rather than recognizing talent irrespective of other factors.
Salary is an issue across the business; however this is a reflection of the infrastructure sector where most companies have raced each other to the bottom (e.g. now moving to 40 hour weeks to squeeze more out of employees( and therefore have minimal margins to play with when it comes to staff salary rises.
There is also a feeling with these big companies (which I've even recognized as a Pro above) that you should be 'lucky' to work there because of their name reputation and this often seems to be how they justify lower salaries. It's a feeling of 'if you're not happy then there are plenty of others waiting to join' - not a great feeling for staff morale or value as an employee.
