Pros
Decent Pay: Amidst various challenges at Constellation, the silver lining was undoubtedly the compensation. The pay structure was competitive, ensuring that the financial aspects of the job were always satisfactory.
Cons
Management Concerns: 1. Top-Down Issues: The hierarchy is plagued with inefficiencies, marked by a glaring lack of support and leadership. - Manager A (The Bottleneck): A central point of all queries, Manager A is overwhelmed due to the inability to delegate and disseminate information, creating a logjam in processes. - Manager B: Though new, Manager B seems constricted by entrenched company policies that are less than optimal. I believe they genuinely want to change practices but they aren't empowered to do so. - Manager C: The capricious nature of Manager C is a concern. Constantly changing decisions, combined with an unfamiliarity with the team's status, complicates the workflow. Being directed towards employees no longer with the company showcases the disconnect. 2. Inefficient Task Management: - Assigning tasks seems to be an oral tradition, with nothing documented or communicated clearly. The urgency assigned to every task makes prioritization a challenge, leading to potential burnouts and high turnover. 3. Communication Barriers: - A culture of "ask to know" has been fostered, yet without clarity on what to ask. This ambiguous communication style makes understanding roles, responsibilities, and expectations a guessing game. Phrasing a question differently can yield entirely different responses, leading to confusion. 4. Documentation Chaos: - Storing critical documents on Microsoft Teams, not only raises cybersecurity concerns but has also led to organizational chaos due to the lack of a structured approach. - The task of streamlining this mess, especially for a newcomer, is Herculean. Without proper guidance on file histories or clear direction on desired structures, the exercise seems futile. Manager A's reluctance, stemming from fears of Manager C's unpredictability, further muddies the waters. It's evident that without a genuine intent to change from management, establishing a coherent documentation system is nearly impossible. 5. Misaligned Roles: - Being a writer, my expertise lies in creating, editing, and documenting. However, I was pigeonholed into the role of documentation organizer, which not only stifles my capabilities but is also a clear case of misplaced responsibilities. 6. Poor Policies - Toward the end of my tenure I was assigne,d a task to move their ServiceNow articles to a new database. One problem, I didn't have access to ServiceNow. To their credit, Manager A and C tried to get me access, but that access should have been granted BEFORE I WAS ASSIGNED THE TASK. When I complained about this, I was told that it's policy for the employee to ask management for the access they need. I'm sorry, What? Management knows what roles I need access to perform the task, but I have to ask them to give me what I need to do my job? This is evident of incredibly poor support. - Time it took for me to get access to do the task: Four weeks. - Time it took for me to complete the task: Half a day. The task could have been done weeks ago if management had policies that actually supported their employees in place. Overall: Working at Constellation has highlighted significant organizational challenges that need urgent attention. From management to communication, there are areas that could greatly benefit from introspection and restructuring.