Carlson Companies Reviews

Former Employee – worked at Carlson Companies full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Culture is amazing. They truly care about their employees and making it a great place to work.

Cons – Politics, but that is anywhere

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Carlson Companies full-time for less than a year

Pros – Nice size network and a lot of great talent.

Cons – Too big for their own britches sometimes. I worked in a satellite office and the way our staff was treated (not working in Minneapolis) made us feel like we had three heads and spoke a language from another planet. When employees in MN didn't feel like getting to our work, they just ignored our phone calls, emails, etc.

Advice to Senior Management – Don't forget about the employees in satellite offices. They work the hardest to push things through the agency, yet they get the least amount of respect from the internal network.

Former Employee – worked at Carlson Companies full-time for more than a year

Pros – Benefits are good (e.g. free gym membership)

Cons – Vertical structure makes it impossible to make any decision no matter how small; little room for mobility once the company finds you suitable for a certain position; management has NO IDEA what their own staff do; company doesn't adhere to mission statement at all.

Advice to Senior Management – Hire people based on ability instead of seniority.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Carlson Companies

Pros – Some managers are very good, I've been fortunate to have several great ones.
Work/life balance is a top priority
In certain departments, employees seem happy
Laid back and flexible

Cons – Leadership in some departments upper level management is lacking - too much consensus building and not enough direct and strong leadership
There seems to be a lot of turn over among the rank and file and people leaving the organization
The general moral within the office is low - people don't appear to be having fun any more
Employee costs of benefits have been rising significantly
Too much red tape and politics makes the company very slow to respond to new ideas, thoughts, and ways of doing business

Advice to Senior Management – Upper management in some departments is in desperate need of new ideas and new management styles which may necessitate some house cleaning. Otherwise things will never change and Carlson's growing reputation as a mediocre place to work will continue, particularly in the Minneapolis area. The directors and VPs in certain departments have been the same for the past decade. The politics and territoriality has to stop. Too much emphasis placed on "not getting blamed" rather than doing what's right for the customer.

Current Employee – been working at Carlson Companies

Pros – Employee benefits are average to above average.

Cons – Upper management turnover. Unhappy employees. Lack of communication between departments.

Advice to Senior Management – Upper management turnover is a bad sign. High number of contractors shows lack of commitment. Montly company status meetings just shows that the Carlson boar is without a rudder/direction.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Carlson Companies

Pros – There is less beurocracy for an enterprise of its size. There is also a somewhat casual and laid back tone.

Cons – lack of strategic direction during tough economic times and there is a lack of transparency with regard to company performance

Advice to Senior Management – A clear consistent strategy needs to be communicated down the ranks and work effort needs to be aligned with that across all business units

Current Employee – been working at Carlson Companies

Pros – The organization is passionate about community involvement. Marilyn Carlson does amazing things also to fight trafficing of young girls globally, relaxed culture, hospitality is fun.

Cons – No upward mobility, don't stick to one strategy. It is constantly changing every few months, currently only hiring/promoting people that are international

Former Employee – worked at Carlson Companies

Pros – Carlson Companies gives you the opportunity to be creative.

Cons – Management tends to do a lot of knee jerk reactions to issues.

Advice to Senior Management – Stop all the knee jerk reactions to issues that will correct themselves.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Carlson Companies

Pros – cmw has a nice group of employees and overall it's a great place to make friends if that is your objective. There is a 'team meeting or party' every other day! It's great if you don't have a life but not so great if you do have a life.

Cons – One of the downsides is the incompetence of it's employee's nationwide. cmw also promotes employees who do not deserve to move up the ladder due to lack of intelligence. more specifically, these employees 'appear' not to use logic to solve simplistic issues.

Advice to Senior Management – Management should adhere to stricter guidelines when hiring employees even if it adds to the hiring process.

Former Employee – worked at Carlson Companies

Pros – Excellent communication with peers and management., Contractors were treated very well. I loved the business culture of their communication and great cafeteria

Cons – difficult for contractors to become full time employees

Advice to Senior Management – Make it easier for contractors that perform very well to be hired

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend