Southern California Edison Reviews

Cons

- Department is a little disorganized, but could be from past layoffs and restructuring
- Bureaucracy; approvals can take a lifetime (it is a utility after all, though things are getting better)
- Could use more direction about short-term and long-term work from management
- Organizations Units can sometimes feel very siloed from each other, but there is definitely an effort to break down walls

Cons

Slow moving company toward innovation

Cons

"Generalists" are favored over experts for senior leadership roles which can lead to inexperienced leaders who may or may not have the appropriate subject matter expertise to manage specialized disciples.

Additionally, in my opinion SCE has far too many middle managers (Manager and Senior Managers). I would recommend having more reports to a single manager and slimming the management ranks.

One other challenge is the frequent rotation of Directors - these are people who have been earmarked for potential executive positions. While maybe a bit of an over generalization, from what I've seen, each new Director is looking to make their mark, which can led to frequent changes in strategy and vision; and inefficiencies as a team will be on one trajectory and then forced to pivot with the change in leadership.

SCE is also a multi-generational company, which has resulted in an uneven skill sets in some groups. Much of the older generation was part of the "employment for life generation" and haven't pushed to acquire the skills needed in the present market. I would recommend offering early retirement in order to slim bloated ranks and bring in fresh blood who are motivated, comfortable working within dynamic, agile environments, and have the most current skill sets.

Additionally, promotions are very difficult to come by at SCE. A lot of very talented people have been locked into the same seniority role for a decade or more. In order to get a promotion you will almost always have to leave your current team or organization and move to another one.

Cons

Bureaucracy sometimes make it difficult to push initiatives through

Cons

- Lost of very knowledgeable, and experienced workers due to transformation
- Being a large company, it can be difficult to navigate to get what you need and to get answers

Cons

long hours no benefits

Cons

Communication can improve but is not bad

Cons

You're sort of treated like a carpetbagger by the "old timers." Employees that have been here greater than 20 years pretty much ignore you. That unfortunately also applies to new ideas or embracing any sort of change - I think these two are a chicken-and-egg sort of thing. The opportunities that were discussed in my interviews haven't materialized and I now understand why: As senior (tenured believing) staff is against new ideas or embracing change, management is unable to incubate new ideas. If you have to wait 20 years until anyone will listen to your ideas, those people with the new ideas will go somewhere else (or just give up and start "pulling a paycheck").

Cons

A jobs program for people who work hard at moving dirt piles from one hole to another

Cons

If you do not live in the area, the commute can be a challenge.