Pros
no job is permanent and you're not trapped
Cons
Projects: IMEG is a pick-me firm meaning IMEG will work on any darn project they win. For example, they get awarded with work on some middle of no where hotel renovation, senior living places, and random TI’s to scrape a fee. Clients they work with are so behind the times using CAD instead of 3D modeling. Projects are meaningless, uninspiring, boring and repetitive. There is less than adequate time to complete projects and often have moving targets deadlines. Fees at getting lower and deadlines are shorter; Milestone deadlines due expected in less than 2 weeks and overlap with each other. There’s no overtime pay for seniors even when there's poor planning by no fault of their own, often caused by project managers. OT is inevitable, long hours are expected! No office iPads for site visits. Some people have work laptops, and some don’t, why? Management/IT takes cheap route with remote log-in with Teamviewer and Espec program freezes. Not great for deadlines Lack of cloud storage utilization, Project folders are not synced to OneDrive or cloud service. Underutilized conference rooms, Clickshare anybody? if they EVER get laptops? Culture: All mid-level engineers left after IMEG acquired small family owned, narrow minded firms. Acts like 100 discrete companies instead of 1 firm. People here still think small. Various interpretations of standards without any push back. Ugly BIM standards. Culture rich of immature frat boy vibes. 90% of the people here are fat old white guys who need a decent haircut in oversized golf polos and dad sneakers who peaked in high school. Cliquish environment. Lacks diversity of thought. Plethora of cheap young experience grads outpaces mid-level. Management allows clients and architects to walk all over them. You’re wasting your life away in a cubicle here. Want to fit in? be a yes-man. no self-awareness at all. "We're a family" BS so there is appalling favoritism and lack of professionalism on top of nepotism. Not open to suggestions or improvements unless asked. When offer feedback, they use it to push their own agenda, Ideas get stolen, no credit is given. Rude inconsiderate coworkers and inflexible/rigid management (audacity of morons just talking to me when I have my headset on clearly on a phone call and they just talk. Oblivious much), workaholic boss (supervisor too busy; takes several days to get expenses and pto approved), unsustainable work schedule, archaic work flows and tech, bullies get promoted, outdated and miserable office. Mentality is stuck in the 80s/90s. Lack of women in the workforce and near zero diversity. Outdated office and technology. Some seniors still markup drawings with pen and paper then scan it. Get with the times! Stressed leadership stresses the entire team out. Rampant gossip and backstabbing to suck up to management. Communication is a major issue. No wonder why clients want to work with other MEP firms. Every man for himself mentality. Out of touch executive management stuck in their ivory towers and will only come out to throw designers & engineers under the bus to make themselves look good. I should have trusted my gut. When interviewing, HR screening was cold and unwelcoming, formulaic. The rest of my time here has been a thankless and emotionally draining experience with a bunch of arrogant, crude, oblivious, awkward coworkers who don’t know basic greetings. If you’re not at headquarters in bumble fudge Rock Island, prepare to embrace that big brotherly Orwellian choke hold; corporate likes to see everything. Work related happy hours on my dollar? No thanks. Benefits: Poor work life balance. Boundaries not respected while on PTO. Management expects you to be online and accessible on people's beck and call when taking time off while on PTO. It’s not time off anymore, it’s time “on.” No FSA card the first year No 401k matching Lunch and learns have been limited. Tell the team these meetings are not billable to save your overhead costs. What’s the point of going to the office then? ESOP is a retirement plan not a profit share that’s easily deposited to your bank account. HR is not here to protect you; they protect the company. Think about it, who’s paying HR at the end of the day? IMEG, so don’t trust HR. Want someone to trust? Talk to an employment lawyer. IMEG will give a bonus for passing the PE/SE exams and contribute to training materials but will not cover the exam fees.
