Ferguson reviews

1. There is a huge issue controlling operational expenses, as many of the reviews state; the company uses the layoff tactic to compensate for them not being able to effectively manage expenses. Product is consistently damaged due to poor shipping from vendors, dc and/or terrible handling once it arrives to a warehouse. These expenses get "written off" but eventually come back as layoffs. On top of that inventory control is non-existent, leading the sales department to order material that will sit for months. This leads to serious profit margin losses and again even more reductions in the workforce. Finally, management (primary sales) has ridiculous expenses with meals, customer "gifts" and other clearly controllable charges. They are focused on building more infrastructure via "Acquisitions" of smaller companies and could care less about a strong talented workforce. 2. Ethics violations are commonplace. I saw ethics violations on a daily basis from sexual harassment to other HR policy/safety issues (like telling an installer tech to risk his own safety for a fridge delivery). Most associates and managers see it as normal and play it off as a joke to avoid being "a problem". They do have an "Ethics Hotline", but the information stops becoming confidential at a certain point and you run the risk of being retaliated against. Upper Management largely consists of the "Good Ole boys club". I've seen this at other companies I worked for, but they really strived to show it here. In other words, if you do anything outside of their expectations (to include constructive feedback) you will essentially paint a target on your back. Your performance and contributions are irrelevant if you are not in the club. If you value place where ethics are important, look elsewhere. 3. Manager training and talent retention is non-existent. Having personally dealt with multiple managers I can say that the level of leadership training they received was 0. Most of them promoted since they were a good associate or survived long enough to get the position (among other reasons). This is largely caused by their talent development program, which is non-existent. I've seen a supervisor get promoted to manager simply because he was next in line when his boss got fired. He had 0 training and was expected to assume multiple leadership responsibilities. Essentially both the manager and his subordinates are being set up for failure. This of course leads to serious morale issues with associates having no faith in their leaders. 4. Smoke and mirrors tactics. Don't be fooled by cheap illusions of "diversity and "inclusion", business resources groups and other corporate shenanigans trying to bait you into the company. Once you get to your respective branch/area/district you will quickly learn that corporate is only the good idea fairy and their expectations of a "structured company" does not exist at their level. They are still operating on the "sell your pipes and toilets to survive" business model and do not have the bandwidth to take care of their workforce. I found out about this early on when they informed me that there was only 1 HR Manager for the whole state and everything else is done through an automated system "AskHR". That being said even their HR Manager has little to no power to correct issues with management and clear workplace toxicity, they are simply there for decorative purposes. If you are entering this company with no professional experience in Corporate America, you'll probably be fine, anything else you will be extremely disappointed. 5. Limited growth and minimal job security. If you want to grow you must be willing to bounce around to different departments, give up your work life balance and of course join the club. Even if you do all these things the chances of promoting or keeping your job are not the best. Listening to stories of some veteran managers and associates really opened my eyes to my short future with Ferguson. They simply don't have the structure necessary to maintain a talented team with backfills, replace outdated systems and create a meaningful and safe environment for all employees. They are growing and may get there but it won't be until another 10+ Years. 5. If you're still reading and considering this company, then the best advice I can give you is stay vigilant. Take advantage of any opportunities to boost your resume and as soon as you find something better GTFO. Avoid working too hard (seriously that will get you nowhere) and make the best out of the "experience". Best of luck!