Buckman Laboratories Reviews

Pros

good package and continous improvement

Cons

not anough feed back to employee

Advice to Senior Management

support employee in difficult times

Pros

Good compensation package, some of the upper managers were great leaders

Cons

Little room for growth or advancement. Many of middle managers are not as involved in company's overall success as they should be. Many employees can 'coast' and get by.

Advice to Senior Management

Create an atmosphere that welcomes the ideas from all levels of the organization, allow the participation of non-managers in opportunities for change

Pros

Excellent place to work if you have a family. If you are ambitious and want to rise quickly, it's very difficult. Benefits are hard to beat anywhere in the country. Like many companies, there is no paid maternity leave. But many generous adjustments are made for people with family like working at home, additional time off, adjustable work hours, time off for doctor's appointments, etc. They could not be better about such things. They long had a reputation about keeping employees through retirement but that has changed. For over sixty years they had a policy of "no layoffs" but recent business climate has put an end to that. At the moment, they are evaluating employees and laying off people with a vengance. So job security - AT THE MOMENT - is unavailable. Also, lots of education available for anyone who wants it...paid for by the company. College education of dependents is paid for but this becomes moot point if one cannot count on employement in the long term. In fact, benefits anywhere should not color one's decision regarding choosing a company for employment. Benefits are subject to change, employment security is gone everywhere.

Cons

Very, very hard to be promoted. Hard work not recognized. Because this is a family company, employees are rewarded for things other than job performance. Executives are given completely free hand in managing their departments which is good if the management is good but really bad when the executive is poor. Large majority of vice presidents are former salesmen (preference to promoting salesmen is extreme: almost impossible to be promoted to upper levels without sales background) and have NO training as managers. They very often hate the day to day things involved with management because they have been working on their own for many years with no one to answer to. Management of a department is a huge difference - and not a pleasant one - for them. Company is very political, like most companies, but additional problems arise from the fact that Buckman is a family company with many executives part of the Buckman family. Of course, those people have an enormous amount of influence.

Advice to Senior Management

Better management is absolutely imperative. Current layoffs, which are so demoralizing, would not have been necessary if management had been better skilled.This is such an important issue that the company's life depends upon it.

Pros

Good Pay
Decent Benefits
Company Car
Home Office

Cons

In house programming usually not as good as what the company could get outside.
No Advancement
Inconsistent middle managers
No product support for small groups

Advice to Senior Management

Take a look at how some of your VPs treat employees. Some of them have no respect from their employees.

Pros

A family run business that takes pride in it's workers and products. The company expects you to retire with them when they hire you full time.

Cons

Policies and procedures are good but not world class. To compete and prosper the company has to upgrade it's thinking. The hiring process can be long and they don't always see the need for increasing staff until it is well beyond needed. Being a family run business has the disadvantage of trying to please the owner rather than the market.

Advice to Senior Management

Stream line manual processes.