US Army Reviews

Pros

Massive Organization, many opportunities
Training Opportunities abound

Cons

Move around a lot
Currently Downsizing

Pros

Four weeks of paid vacation and the ability to take time off for family emergencies contributes to it being a good work environment

Cons

The hours are long and there is a lot of time spent away from your family on deployments or at training

Advice to Senior Management

I do not have any advice to offer to management of my organization. The leaders come up with policies that I follow

Pros

Pride, making a difference in the world, travel, self worth, best retirement and disability system, best benefits package, continued education, best people in the world to work with, always learning new jobs and growing as a person, best equal opportunity record, equal pay regardless of gender, free housing and cost of living adjustments for expensive areas, free or reduced utilities and trash, you are not just an employee that can easily be replaced - you are constantly mentored through out your career, excellent advanced training. I am so proud to have served in the U.S. Army and it feels so good to retire at 22 years at the age of 42.

Cons

Dangerous, long work days, no hourly wage, long periods away from home (longest was 15 months), very hard work, harsh environments, long periods with nothing but what you can carry, miss lots of Birthdays, Anniversaries, and of course Christmas, miss those who have given all, nightmares, tough life. But would do it all over again. I am only retiring because my body cannot take it any more, but I will miss the deployments and the Soldiers, and the way of life.

Advice to Senior Management

More emphasis on good leadership, mentoring of junior Soldiers, remove the weight restrictions (must be able to pass PT test), allow women into combat fields, deployments give our jobs meaning, it is what we joined for, not to pick up trash in the motor pool.

Pros

Nothing compares to the experiences you have while in the Army. Everyday is a new challenge that will always keep you motivated.

Cons

You may have to work long hours and spend time away from loved ones for long periods of time. Sometimes it can get stressful but its all worth it!

Pros

Travel oppurtunity, Intellectually stimulating, fun.

Cons

Danger, mired in beauracracy, incompetent peers.

Advice to Senior Management

Take care of your people better.

Pros

Benefits, Pride, Patriotism, Compensation, Quality of Life

Cons

Time away from family and medical issues after deployment

Pros

World wide opportunities to do anything possible in your career field. Great educational potential and a great starting point into nearly any career.

Cons

Very time consuming. The army is very bureaucratic and top heavy leading to a very inflexible work environment in most locations.

Advice to Senior Management

Be more flexible. Especially for the signal and military intelligence soldiers. The brightest and best for those career fields are unlikely to be the PT studs, and yet are much more valuable.

Pros

Very reliable pay and good benefits package.

Cons

Loss of many freedoms that you have in a regular job and if you get a bad boss then the job can suck until that person moves on. Usually about 2-3 years.

Advice to Senior Management

Get rid of toxic leaders.

Pros

The life is comfortable. The salary is adequate and the benefits are good and dependable. You will be eventually promoted if you stick around long enough.

Cons

You're going to inch along toward your next promotion no matter how hard you work. Sure, you could get promoted ahead of your peers, but the likelihood isn't very high. The end result are those that pull a lot more weight for those that are just watching others pull the weight. You end up feeling stagnant. The motivation to push towards greater success is internal, because there is very little, if any financial incentive.

Advice to Senior Management

Rework the evaluation system so that it really matters and has impact. Now, it's just a block check for most bosses. Plus, no one really writes reviews that criticize. There's a lot of "reading between the lines" leaving subordinates confused and/or mislead about their abilities.

Pros

Pay, Health, Education benefits. No education beyond high school needed.

Cons

Work/life balance- you earn that small but early retirement
If you have a bad supervisor, it can ruin your career/time investmented
No shortage of big egos

Advice to Senior Management

Incorporate subordinate reviews into Field Grade Officer evals. Require yearly skills testing in reading comp, vocabulary, math, etc. (that cannot be cheated on). No skills, there's the door/ no promotion.