The good, bad, and ugly. Unmanned Systems (AAI Corp)
Pros
Compensation and benefits were very good. The people were some of the best I've met. You can travel if you want to. The work is pretty cool. There is a good amount of talent you work with. They got that going for them, which is good.
Cons
Tons of bureaucracy and more bad leadership than good. HR has lost its rightful place in the hierarchy and has somehow become the supreme authority....this is beyond a con. If you are reading this and thinking about working here and have never experienced an HR dominated organization, please save all of your happiness and look elsewhere; it'll suck your soul dry of happiness watching as your leaders are denigrated to nothing and your friends continue to be laid off but this magical group of low skilled/talent individuals continue to rule. Its almost like congress. You will work. In many cases, you will work (uncompensated) far beyond 40 hrs/wk. Engineers and PMs work week usually ends around 50 hrs, sometimes far beyond. This would be fine if it was known upfront so someone could negotiate their salary ahead of time but it isn't. If you expect 40 and out, this isn't the place. Negotiate at least 25% more salary because you will be expected to put that time in. Promotions are few and far between. I was in a meeting where they explained that a level III engineer is considered a good career level and that IV's, Principals, and Fellows, are reserved for SMEs and that most folks will never see past III. Lots of engineers left that following year.
