IT Manager - Anonymous employee Alcoa Employee Review

1.0
Apr 10, 2015
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

If you happen to be friends with the CEO's admin staff or HR leads, you're guaranteed a job even if all you know is how to pole dance or pull draft beer handles.

Cons

The New York office of Alcoa is best characterized as stale and unchanging, filled with protected mediocre talent who couldn't compete elsewhere. HR is too busy coddling incompetent staff at all levels who have no business working in business while at the same time hire young, enthusiastic agents of change who quickly learn of their mistake of accepting the offer letter. The culture in the NY office simply provides little to no growth - technically or professionally. Facilities are poor for a headquarters office and are overseen by an inexperienced and incompetent team. Cronyism is deeply rooted here - half the admin assitants were either waitresses in bars or worse - but because of "friends" within HR or inside the CEO's office, they now enjoy protected status. Management sits back, excuses and accepts this culture as "this is the best we can get"...that all the best talent is vacuumed up by the nearby investment banks and law firms. Very few are interested in change...you can even see this at leadership conferences where the CEO challenges his top staff and HR to hire better, more engaged and competent people and he is met by dead, disengaged stares.

Explore other reviews about Alcoa

5.0
Apr 12, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Company truly cares about its values and is willing to support projects that have high value

Cons

IT presents many barriers to efficient work.

1.0
May 7, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Ability to work 100% remote.

Cons

ITAS OTC Manager has no clue how to manage, encourage development, or plan growth. He was too busy trying to keep his skills up and not actually cultivate newcomers and manage well. I felt alone and not supported by my manager. The environment is not great for newcomers to the company. The team supposedly has so much work, but was able to lay me off after returning to work from health event. Complete and utter joke. They do not honor their core values. Beware of this place.

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