Pros

If the reason that you're working is to make a lot of money and don't care about your home/social life than Alcoa is a great place to work. There are always opportunities to work overtime (which is paid) over the weekends. It is also a smaller company so there is more of a family atmosphere. The company also instills a strong work ethic and trains their employees well, so if in the end you feel the company is not a good fit for you personally you will definitely have valuable experience to assist you in the next step of your career.

Cons

One of the most troubling things about working for Alcoa is the layoffs. You never know when they're going to happen and you never know who is going to be affected. It is also difficult to get anyone out of the past. Product is designed the old fashioned way - with grunt work (hence the overtime), and there is little consideration as to where the product is going to go in the future. Then the products that are attempted for the future of the company are out of scope and far beyond the capability and core competencies of the company.

Advice to Senior Management

Communication should exist more often than when layoffs are going to occur. The health and well being of the company is and should be important to the employees and this needs to be communicated on a regular basis. Also a plan for future product development needs to be designed, executed, and followed through with deviations only when proved that the current plan was the wrong decision.