Hmm, where to start? Like most new employees, I was starry-eyed at first, but I was quickly returned to reality the more I learned about this place. In the last year there has been a lot of overturn in the management/supervisory staff. The majority of the ones that are left seem to view the average production worker with disdain, and they disregard and disrespect the years of experience they've gained. Overall, the morale among the membership is the lowest that most can remember. Upper management seems very out of touch (or just doesn't care) about the plight of the rest of us who build the products that enable them to keep their high-profile jobs & salary. Even though Woodward talks a lot about not wasting underutilized talent (read: let people move up from where they are & let them do what they're good at doing) in practice, it's just talk. One of my co-workers applied for a job in the office area where this person actually has a degree to do, and when they asked about the status of their application, were told "no internal applications are being reviewed at this time." Imagine the disappointment. Why post the job then? Basically, if you're in production, forget about moving out, even if you have a degree and are very qualified. I had seriously thought about making Woodward a career until I saw how impossible it is to move up, unless you happen to work in a corner office or have a leather chair. They have also raised the specter of outsourcing their assembly work. I've heard stories about how great of a place Woodward was to work at from some of the old-timers. It seems like Woodward is quickly becoming the Wal-Mart of employers here in Fort Collins. The shareholders are probably really happy, though. They're definitely not the employer they were a few years ago.
