AT&T

Nice commercials.

Benefits.

Great field workforce (techs & support).

Global communications and wireless behemoth.

Way too many middle-management "chiefs" who have zero technical knowledge or corporate insight into the technology AT&T advertises but refuses to use or support internally. If it does not appear on a memo, email, or "Q" instant message from their direct supervisor, don't expect any assistance or support from anyone in any organization.

Upper management spends their time micromanaging other employees and jockeying for attention on the same projects while ignoring their internal staff and the customer. The epitome of a "communications" company that has no idea how to communicate.

Unfortunately, they also do not know how to attract or retain people with a passion for technology. They're losing resources at a record pace in management to look "good" on Wall Street and have no idea how to embrace the Mobile and Web 2.0 technologies they put on their commercials.

Sadly, most still there are just keeping quiet and suffering in silence long enough to reach retirement or a buyout offer. It's a shame and a straight-line map on how to take a brand, talented employee base, and technological opportunity and drive all into the ground.

Sadly, it's reflected daily in the complete lack of customer service. If a company can't even communicate internally so that one department knows what the other is doing, it's no surprise there is zero customer support.

They want to keep you, and they want to give you a million different services – they just don't know how to support it without internal bickering.

Eighty percent of the upper and middle management base works to prohibit innovation. The remaining 20% are just waiting to retire or feverishly abandoning the boat known as AT&T.

Put the focus on your employees and customers. You'll retain current employees and attract the best/brightest if you offer the ability to work with innovative technologies and implement them internally. You don't have to pay folks six figures; just make them happy to come in and work for you without having them report to 10 different bosses. Don't limit your management employees in working in only your "specified" locations (AT&T promotes a "mobile workforce"... unless you're an employee, that is). Give folks the tools, resources, and trust to do their jobs. That's why you hired them. Micromanagement and a way-too-top-heavy middle and upper management structure, comprised of people who would rather sit on a conference call or "T-Meeting" 12 hours a day than make any decision or -- gasp! -- support and back up their own organization. If you're looking at going into technology, or even wireless/mobile technology, don't plan on working for AT&T. The sheer daily frustration of customer complaints and management incompetence will cause you mental and physical harm. Sad to see so many good employees leave after SBC, ATT, and BellSouth merged into "one" company. Each geographic region has different systems that do not "talk" to each other (just like the departments), and the only progress being made is when a middle manager from the old SBC explains, "You'll do it [our] way," even if you have mechanized systems that do it faster, better, and cheaper... because "their" company bought yours. The only good thing AT&T has done in the last several years is inking the deal with Apple for the iPhone (thank Randall Stephenson himself for spearheading that one). Beyond that, they've all but killed off any real support.