Caterpillar reviews

4.0

78% would recommend to a friend

(7,309 total reviews)

Joe Creed

68% approve of CEO

74% positive business outlook

Caterpillar has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 7,309 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Caterpillar employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Manufacturing industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

7K reviews
5.0
Jan 13, 2009
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

There are a lot of opportunities to work in diifferent areas. They are also focusing more on work life balance and have experimented with flexible work hours, compressed work week and the ability to work from home. The people who work at Caterpillar are extraordinary to work with and teamwork is very evident.

Cons

The "Good Old Boy" network still exists in some areas, in that people advance based on a core group of men who have worked together and are very successful. They are in a position to advance people. Senior Management is extremely male dominated and over 50 years of age. Because of this, most major decisions are extremely conservative and slows the company down.

5.0
Jan 12, 2009
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Not only is Caterpillar the global leader in what it does, it is refreshingly committed to sustainable development, high value (not just low cost) manufacturing, and excellence. Caterpillar has a core of values called Our Values in Action, that stress Excellence, Team Work, Integrity, and Commitment, and I truly sense that these values matter. It is fulfilling to be part of a "team" that commands its market, exports globally from a US-centered manufacturing base (how many companies can still say that?), and embraces good corporate citizenship. There are excellent opportunities for overseas assignments and travel, a wide range of competencies, a relaxed atmosphere (not true at all locations, of course), and reasonably generous overall compensation (including a performance-based lump sum annual bonus that increases as a % of your salary as you progress up the career ladder). From my experience, it is also family friendly. Managers are allowed to work from home if need be (sick child), though off-site work isn't common, and there are subsidized family activities. Peoria is a very cost-effective place to raise a family, and Caterpillar's salary and benefit package are easily the most generous in the metropolitan area (and go quite far).

Cons

Can be very bureaucratic. Similarly, it is hard to institute change with many people having a vested interest in the status quo, and simply hoping to ride out their careers to retirement with no shocks. This is probably true of many large corporations, of course. Peoria and some other Caterpillar locations may not be attractive to young, unmarried, more "cosmopolitan" workers, but hey, it's a heavy equipment manufacturer, not a software development firm.

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