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Slow and steady works for some but not all at Rocket Center

Applications Developer
Current Employee
Has worked at IBM for 2 years
March 25, 2017
Cumberland, Maryland
3.0
RecommendsPositive OutlookNo CEO Opinion
Pros

You will learn every day no matter how piddly the role is you fill. Every experience has pushed me to be better, and that is one thing I cannot deny about Rocket Center.

Office is quiet, and all of the management within the Client Innovation Center are very friendly. Benefits are very good and almost make up for the lower salaries. Absolute job security.

Total freedom for making your hours depending on your project and manager (as of Spring 2017; this may have been different in the past). They want you to get work done; that is all.

Other opportunities to be involved are a bit of a time drain, but they have provided a better sense of morale for the staff. The overall facility is nice, with an onsite cafeteria and onsite gym.

Cons

The office is quite grey and does not benefit from the beautiful mountain backdrop, thanks to government-issued cubes. IBM artwork is lame and small; it doesn't cut it!

Salaries are low comparative to the industry. However, the industry is hyper-competitive right now, and the benefits are pretty good. In addition, the surrounding area is very inexpensive to live in.

Much of the management seems to have their hands tied or are too busy to be able to help eager employees make moves. There is limited flexibility in moving beyond the CIC, and I see this as a huge talent drain for IBM. If I ever leave the CIC, I probably won't return to IBM ever again.

Security onsite is tight and sometimes is annoying. The guards have been quite rude toward me; I feel targeted for my age and stature.

All internal IBM solutions are largely garbage. I get spammed by IBM corporate about 20 emails a day. Considering quitting just because of the damn emails!

Advice to Management

Fight for more resources from IBM.

Boost the value of the CIC.

Reward your best employees, or you WILL lose them! Reward with $$; not blue points, as those are an insult to hard work.

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