Pros
I was an employee at CSC for a little over 11 years. During that time, I worked on a number of projects, was a team member supporting operational tasks and finally promoted to management. CSC was not an easy company to work for but when a need was identified and justified, somehow, somewhere the funds were secured to move forward and meet our contractual / regulatory obligations. Rank and file staff members always made themselves available to run problems to the ground. We worked them through nights and weekends – whatever it took. On occasion, management would acknowledge the effort and send out an ‘atta boy’ and maybe throw a small pizza party.
Cons
Fast forward to the Lawrie model. As soon as he walked in the door, the stock price took off – he was the answer everyone had been looking for. His “Transformation” agenda sounded like a real plan to move CSC toward becoming a real technology solutions company. “Cloud”, “Big Data”, “Analytics” were the cornerstones of this new revitalization effort. Unfortunately, they were just buzz words CSC started using in their press releases and web site. Shortly after he arrived, employee health care was “modified” so that it was more in line with industry standards. So we were told. We were also told via CSC’s employee blog that the reason for the drastic change and rate increases were the result of the ACA (Obama-care). Next came “rethinking” how the 401K was administered. We went from a paycheck to paycheck contribution of matching funds to a once a year cycle. If went to work for CSC in January and left before the end of the year, sorry – no matching benefit. Employee assessments were “modernized” by deploying the bell curve process. By definition, 40% of all CSC employees will not satisfy minimum performance standards and therefore will not be eligible for any salary adjustment. Most recent corporate “enhancement” to be issued was the forced vacation policy. No more carry over for a rainy day – use it or lose it, oh and by the way, CSC shuts down for the Christmas / New Year holiday to burn up one week of your vacation at their discretion. I could go on about the forced relocation of NPS business units to Bossier City LA and the added benefit of a 10% pay cut – sorry for the cynicism. I won’t speak to the extraordinary compensation plans afforded to only the most senior management positions. ( Hint: Google - "michale lawrie compensation" ) My recommendation for prospective candidates – if you NEED a job and CSC makes an offer, take it but aside from performing your daily tasks, make it your top priority to find another position outside CSC. At least until the current CEO leaves.