Grainger Employee Reviews about "upper management"

Pros

Good pay, fast paced, no conpensation cap, good benefits, good company reputation

Cons

Turnover can be high, upper management can be secretive

Pros

Work/life balance is there and benefits provided are great!

Cons

The inside sales organization is new so there has been a lot of change within the first few years as well as a lot of turnover both middle management and upper management.

Pros

Clean, dry and relatively safe environment to work in. Job stability used to strong until Amazon jumped in the ring. After that, all bets were off. Branches closed and a lot of the remaining jobs went to Mexico. That might not seem like a "pro" but it is, if you are Mexican.

Cons

There's a lot of corporate BS. Each year employees are forced to do self reviews that end up nowhere. Just a waste of everybody's time just to fill reports to make upper management feel good about themselves. Nothing is ever done with those reviews.

Advice to Management

Stop the dividends for a few years and invest in the real development of your employees.

Pros

The pay is pretty good, depending on your position

Cons

Little respect from upper management

Advice to Management

Treat your team members with more respect and listen to your team

Pros

Great peers and co-workers for the most part although some of them think they're the finest gifts to mankind; very good (but not great) pay, excellent vacation time; health care benefits are fantastic. Big company with small-company feel. Never boring--there is ALWAYS something to do and they encourage initiative and ideas. Telecommute is allowed, two great locations including one in Chicago where the younger crowd... hangs.

Cons

Often times, you feel as if upper management keeps you in the dark. Something is coming, your instincts are telling you about a reorg or some other structural shift, but they never make it known. Hold their cards closely; bonuses good certainly be way better. 5% isn't cutting it anymore; Amazon is getting into the game which means Grainger needs to knock the hustle. In 5 years things are going to change

Advice to Management

Be more open and have communication. Whether its email or town halls, keep people in the loop especially if your area will be impacted. Try and provide more growth. Easy to get trapped in the same job year after year here.

Pros

It’s a paycheck with decent benefits

Cons

Upper management is full of horse excrement with this value monetization. You’re a Distributor. Make more on volume versus margin. Mid-level management doesn’t pull their weight. Measures you on bs metrics versus goal attainment. They manipulate numbers and account lists.

Advice to Management

Stop. Spitting in your customer’s face with Zoro and Gamut. Scrutinize District Managers who have high turnover.

Pros

Grainger is one of the most advanced MRO suppliers in the market. They have a wide range of products. They contribute to strive and become relevant in an ever changing procurement environment. Benefits are hard to walk away from.

Cons

The upper management is too focused on justifying their jobs. Processes are complex in the AM role, where competition easily excels. Way too many expectations for a position that really comes down to price and convenience. Cheap budget on business expenses (car, lunches, entertainment, etc.). Had I known the job would be what it is now I would have humbly declined.

Advice to Management

Drop the ego and thinking you are superior to your competitors. You can’t be great at everything, but could be great at what matters. Grainger isn’t the best, they just have a great name to go with decent egotistical leaders.

Pros

Beautiful building. Great location. Excellent amenities!

Cons

The security department is unequivocally the most toxic environment I've ever been in. Upper management seems great, but they're isolated as to the conditions that mobile and command officers endure. Middle management is extremely condescending and promotes an unhealthy environment. I would avoid Grainger security at all costs. Although very snobby, the staff at other departments seem ok.

Advice to Management

Have one on one conversations with your officers, before be you'll be patrolling and monitoring yourselves!