McMaster-Carr reviews

Interview - The in-person interviews lasted about 2 hours. They extended an offer a week later and I started two weeks after that. Two red flags that I picked up were how they dodged my question of what programs I would be using (keep reading below). And the second red flag was when I asked if they have promotional opportunities and all they said was "oh yeah we MOVE people around so they get a different experience in the company", so basically no. Programs - Are you a tech savvy and like using simple keyboard shortcuts? You can forget about that since the program they use is IC1 and it was discontinued by IBM in the 70's or 80's (I'm not sure since there is NO information about it online). And it is not something you will be able to use anywhere else. Weird thing is that they seem to take some pride in this. Excel and Adobe are also used sometimes but you only need a limited knowledge of them to accomplish your tasks. Co-Workers - You can never really know who to trust. If you complain to any of your coworkers, there is a chance that they will let your manager know and throw you under the bus. So be careful. Any complaint about the company is highly demonised and could lead to you being fired. People don't greet each other in the mornings either, everyone is seemed afraid to even say hi, not something I have experienced anywhere else. Environment - Very strange environment, it feels tense but people still have forced smiles on their faces. I was asked to "smile more" while I was working even though I would basically be reading information off my screen and assembling data with no clients around. I'm not exactly watching cat videos on Youtube but they still wanted me to smile. They clearly didn't ask my male coworker who sat in front of me to do that...dude never smiled. It felt very sexist and who doesn't love that? Training - The process is very quick and they expect you to jump into your tasks with perfection soon after. The "helpful guides" I was given had so much missing information and was disorganised. If you don't pick things up quickly then you're at risk of losing your job. HR - I work in HR (now) and almost lost my head at the lack of professionalism. Any issues you may have with your supervisor or coworkers are directly blamed on you, they will never be addressed. Go to them at your own risk because in the end, they only really care about the image of the company. Promotional Opportunities - None. Like I said, they will move you around and not really promote you to management. You have to start in management if you ever want to be in management. Retirement - Don't expect to retire here either, people who have worked here for 10+ years get fired for no reason. There are only very few people that are retiring and they have been here for a very long time but no one who came after them seems to be able to get that opportunity. Feedback - Do you do a good job? You will never know since they will expect you to do a good job and that's that. Did you make a few mistakes especially during your first few weeks? Be prepared for some fun "meetings" where they analyse even the smallest mistakes you make and threaten your job. Just read the other reviews, this is a constant tactic they use and aren't afraid to deliver. Let's say something in the system failed and you handed in your assembled data, which happened to me once, they still blamed me for not "noticing" even though I double-checked the data and it took them an entire day to figure out that the information in the system was wrong (no fault of my own). And why did I not ask any questions? Just a few days before they told me that I should stop asking questions. But I should have asked THIS question...yeah...my bad... Day-To-Day - VERY mind-numbing work, if you are an intellectual and have a creative mind, it will die here. It's the same work day in and day out with no substance. A rerun of the beginning of Office Space is how I would describe it. This company is the personification of a Dementor - (dark creatures that consume human happiness, creating an ambience of coldness, darkness, misery and despair). It is not rewarding yet it is very stressful since perfection is expected. You will sit at your desk in fear of losing your job every day. After MCM - This is the worst part. Once you decide to add the things you did for MCM into your resume, you will realise that there isn't anything of value to use in other companies. I decided to leave after a few months when realising this and did not want to waste any more time. I suggest you do the same. MCM knows what they are doing, they want you to leave within a few years so they don't have to pay your retirement and give you any benefits. If you don't leave, they will fire you eventually even if you are perfect at your job.

1. In all of the interviews they will obfuscate what the real job they're hiring you for entails. There's a reason they are being vague with you, and it's because they don't want you to get wind of how monotonous and mind-numbing the job actually is. 2. MCM supposedly loves their customers. But then you are told by your supervisors that you cannot give the customer what s/he actually wants--especially if that thing is the coveted MCM Catalog. One customer actually started crying when I became the 30th employee in 10 years to tell him we wouldn't send him a catalog. Turns out, we had mistakenly sent him a few catalogs more than a decade ago, and he desperately wanted to find out how he could get back "on the list." He was desperate. I eventually mailed him my personal copy (anonymously), because I was so broken-hearted after hearing this grown man cry. 3. Your coworkers are genuinely nice people, but they will throw you under the bus. Your job is only safe as long as you are valuable. And make no mistake: only a small percentage of MCM employees are ever truly valuable. 4. There is no viable excuse for missing work (unless you're on maternity/paternity leave, disability, or some other protected type of leave). Your child/spouse is in the hospital for a few days? Your dog got run over by a car and now you're distraught? Too bad--better show up for work 20 minutes early, as usual. 5. The company runs on a system of unethical, but not illegal, practices. Your bosses will lie to you, they will tell you to lie to coworkers and customers, and if you don't like it you're on the short list of people to be fired. Don't expect anyone to stand up for what is right and good, or come to your aid. 6. Don't expect to be rewarded for what you're good at. MCM will stick you in whatever position they please (guess what--you're now working in the warehouse!), and if you aren't particularly good at it, they'll fire you. Forget that you can type 50 words per minute, and have fantastic leadership and sales experience, and would be a great fit for the sales department or the TCC.