Panalpina Reviews

Pros

Great Business Unit manager. Very knowledgeable and fantastic leader. Lots of positive changes made in past year uplifting the team spirit and overall performance

Cons

Breakroom could be improved and made comfortable

Advice to Senior Management

Keep on doing a great job!!!!

Pros

One of the biggest 3PLs
An excellent WW network.
There are some very talented professionals.
You can and must be self suffcient.
Excellent e-education.

Cons

You will grow thanks to relationships, no merits.
You have to push the people to do what is required.
Company works in silos.
If the customer is not big, no body cares.

Advice to Senior Management

A clear career path and education must be put in place

Pros

They are good pay master.

Cons

I don't like the concept of clubbing documentation & customer service.

Advice to Senior Management

I leave it to the management to lead their way.

Pros

- Overall a great company for mid to low level employees
- good team spirit between the mid/low level staff
- decent salary package
- good global structure

Cons

- if you are not swiss or german, just forget about it - you are not going anywhere
- good ole' boys network - if you aren't part of it - you are nobody
- senior management does not stand behind certain decisions, not how it used to be where managers would take a decision to take care of their employees and fight for them - if the book says no it is no.
- time to re structure - promote your mid level managers and make sure to have a career plan to all potential employees and not only the guys with the red passport.
- HR policies are weak and full of loop holes - lack of career path and subsequent promotions and changes.
- Ultimately the weak HR policies support the good ole' boys network which leads to a huge turnover of employees ( Panalpina remains a great school, graduating employees for other companies)

Advice to Senior Management

It's time to change - else you keep loosing more and more staff and soon you may have to bring Switzerland over to America.

Pros

Always encourage employees to succeed in there career

Cons

Bonus and salary should be increase

Pros

Dedicated team of people working together for the same reasons

Cons

I.T. Systems need to be updated

Advice to Senior Management

Improve I.T. Systems

Pros

Good corporate infrastructure. Friendly colleagues. Hours are sometimes long, but most positions in transportation are. Good reputation within the industry.

Cons

It's transportation. Not exactly the most glamorous of industries, in fact probably the least glamorous industry on earth, but commerce makes the world go round.

Advice to Senior Management

Set Panalpina appart from the competitors by modernizing the workplace culture. Panalpina's systems are antiquated and there are far too many of them.

Pros

-Good people in the mid to lower areas of the company
- decent medical/dental benefits.
-good 401k and vacation package.
-vast resources for completing the task at hand.
-Decent bonus structure. Actually paid out. One of the best in the industry.

Cons

-Management is a "good ole boys' network - but in this instance - European managers in a US Market seems to be more the norm.
-Managers who failed at one branch moved to another - if they are EU based.
-Poor communication from the top down on matters of changes.
-Blame rolls down hill quickly and is passed along and rarely accepted.

Advice to Senior Management

Purge the network of Managers that have more than 25 years of experience, or at least put them somewhere where they can't do anymore damage. Their style is very out of date and not conducive to expansion/growth.
They do not think out of the box and this will always hold the company back from growing.
They don't want to rock the boat and also don't want anyone else to rock it.
Their way is the right way - no matter what.
Many times did I hear that the customer should trust us and not question rates etc. That thinking will get you no where with customers whose jobs are to do the best for their company, not yours.
Also got sick of hearing how they didn't want certains types of business because it was "too hard" and not "easy money". If we aren't in it to make money, easy or hard then why are we in it in the first place?

Pros

The people are all in the same crazy boat together. For this reason they make the best of it and are very friendly towards each other.

Cons

The hours are very long in some departments and while they pay overtime, the amount of work you are expected to complete is really not worth it sometimes.

Advice to Senior Management

Recognize the amount of time certain employees are sacrificing on a regular basis to make things run smoothly and compensate those people what they deserve.

Pros

Friendly working environment and a certain amount of job stability

Cons

Salaries are not always equal to market value

Advice to Senior Management

Certain managers are good at delegating, but do not put in their fair share of the work