Pros
Pay is relatively good for AEC firms, some people see working in the Empire State Building as a plus, some great people. People leave at 5 (if not earlier) and generally don’t work overtime or on the weekends. Many employees are compensated for any overtime pay. Healthcare is not bad, lots of options and decent coverage.
Cons
Very little respect in the workplace. There is bullying, backstabbing, a willingness to throw anyone under to save one’s own skin. All of this is done in a quiet way so many employees think they’re to blame when they’re just being constantly undermined by untrained and vengeful managers. A lot of performative “I’m so busy and important” behavior that allows people to avoid scrutiny and skip meetings and remain generally useless under the guise of being busy with other more urgent projects. If you are a straight white man who has no interest in thinking for yourself, having any meaningful interactions with colleagues, and likes to wear a HNTB pin on your suit lapel everyday, you may succeed here. If you are not a straight white man, you will likely suffer. For being an office in New York, everyone lives in New Jersey and the demographic is reflective of that. I’ve never seen a less diverse workplace. There is really no forward thinking, no creativity, little intelligence. Many people don’t care about transit or transit users. A lot of useless meetings and protocols that nobody really understands or follows and a lot of not particularly smart people pretending to be intelligent by putting others down. I have never been more unhappy than during my time at HNTB. It felt like walking into a prison everyday. Nobody seems happy. I would avoid.
