Pros

The people, the products, the passion for what they do is evident and definite commitment to helping develop most people.

Cons

Not great at recognition in some areas.

Advice to Senior Management

Need more synergies in leadership and talking and promoting ideas between sectors. Some efforts being made, but need improvement.

Pros

IR is a good company with many dedicated employees. They have a nice portfolio of quality, legacy products. They provide great benefits and treat the employees well.

Cons

Outsourcing the products to foreign countries is detrimental to the long term health of the company. Upper management is there to "check the box" and move up, not caring what carnage they leave in their wake.

Advice to Senior Management

consult the folks on the street and on the factory floors (the few that are left) for their input on products and how we should do things.

Pros

IR has competitive benefits compared to other companies.

Cons

Too much re-organizations. Before issues can be resolved, the resources involved either move up or move out leaving a gap in the functional capacity of the company.

Advice to Senior Management

Retain the skilled workers you have. Offshoring is NOT a cost effective alternative, it is just delaying the impact of the cost avoided by using domestic resources.

Pros

Large corporation and our division had clear access to senior level management. Good career development/education program available to certain employees. Great products with a true desire to produce quality.

Cons

They tended to focus on M&A vs. organic growth. They tried to fit square pegs in round holes by assuming newly acquired companies' markets were identical to existing businesses.

Advice to Senior Management

There is a need for a focus on R&D and nimbleness in businesses with competitive markets. In my experience, IR rested on current technology while competitors were innovating and capturing market share. Promises were made to correct that but when it came down to it, there was not enough in the budget, yet they sat on huge cash reserves. Senior management often stayed at nicer hotels, drove rental cars above authorized T&E policies. This often occurred during times that travel restrictions were imposed and budgets were slashed for everyone else.

There were two classes of employees and it was made obvious and flaunted. I was lucky enough to be on the receiving end of this but morale suffered across the company because of this underlying friction.

When employees left they were not replaced in an effort to be lean. Customer service suffered severely and was noted in the field.

On the positive, the IRU program was great. The education was meaningful and carried over in future positions outside the company. Good benefits for employees compared to similar size corporations. I appreciated the quarterly financial reviews and Q&A with senior management that included everyone from receptionists to directors.

Pros

Salary and benefits are good. IR has decent product development programs. A lot of bright people. Some good products.

Cons

The re-org in 2007 was very poor and has created an extremely disfunctional company. Very little chance to advance. The Air side of the business is the dominant driver in the I.T. sector. Other businesses don't work in their model, and resource preference is always given there.

Advice to Senior Management

The IR brand is not worth what you think it is. Get out in front of the customer more.

Pros

Solid Fortune 500 Company that develops leaders well. I was given extensive training and opportunities to advance. The company values those leaders that have drive and invest in their best assets - people. Their core business in infrastructure is a world wide need and sets them up for a good future/outlook. Other industries are being hit by this economical downturn much harder.

Cons

There are trending towards the outssourcing of its manufacturing operations. I am a manufacturing specialist so I am against the principle - despite realizing the financial impacts.

Advice to Senior Management

Continue Leadership Development programs and invest in human capital

Pros

Good people at lowest levels of the organization.
Individual cultures at plant locations are people friendly and hard working.
There are pockets of sincere, dedicated, smart, and talented individuals who do a lot for the company. These people are the ones who make the company run and pick up the slack for all others. This is true in any company, but my point is mainly that IR has a history of relying too much on these individuals without properly rewarding them and eventually these people leave. I have seen the best talent turn over significantly in the past three years. The worst talent lingers on indefinitely without any signs of leaving.

Cons

Difficulty enacting strategic decisions and building company unity. This is due less to senior leadership and more on the incompetence of middle management at executing directives. IR is taking steps at improving this but it is a slow cycle. I estimate another 5 years until the middle management is able to compete at the levels of the competition.
Middle management is extremely lacking.
Too little focus on developing lower and middle range employees. Pizza parties are about the extent of the benefits to frontline employees. Pretty weak considering the good work they do.
Company in general is hesitant to take strategic risks.

Advice to Senior Management

Improve middle management capacity quickly.

Pros

There are many opportunities for cross functional work. Being able to see how other areas of the business work has been beneficial

Cons

The pay is horrible, and for experienced individual contributors there are not many opportunities to advance your career.

Advice to Senior Management

You need to do a better job of identifying and developing talent in the middle of the corporate later. All the effort and attention are towards high potention entry level and Sr. Management/Executive employees. The individuals with quite a bit of experience but not yet at the upper management level seem to be ignored/forgotten.

Pros

Direct management is very supportive and tries to do their best to explain the company strategies, to provide feedback on the job and to participate in the development. As well, if you have a right character you can achieve a lot, meaning career development and growth.

Cons

No brand recognition in European region, none of the acquired companies calls itelf Ingersoll Rand, so Corporate culture doesn't exist. High people turnover and absence of any retention policy and/or analysis. Compensation package not adapted to the competitive environment, especially in the emerging markets, but overall in Europe. No transparency in salaries/ difficult access to training and development opportunities. Lack of longterm career development planning.

Advice to Senior Management

Come to the region for an assignment and see how business works here.

Pros

The benefits (health, dental, 401K, etc.) are very respectable. They are stepping up there efforts to promote innovation within the company and increase participation certainly a good direction for the company.

Cons

The facilities and offices are dark and have not been updated in 40 years it seems. The company has kept around many of its old guard and it is going through a bit of a transition period so there is friction between the old and the new. They offer many, many online courses but it becomes very difficult to be sent to traveling location whether outside the company or on the IRU campus in Davidson.

Advice to Senior Management

Their management style is completely top down and they need to do a much better job at managing from the bottom up.