AECOM

Pros: Being a Project Engineer at AECOM's Atlanta office offers excellent opportunities to work on large-scale infrastructure projects in the engineering consulting industry. I've gained valuable experience and benefited from learning from seasoned professionals. The company's stability and hybrid work options are significant positives, contributing to good career development.
Cons: While there's good job security, the promotion process can feel slow within such a large, global firm. Occasional project deadlines demand longer hours, which can impact work-life balance despite decent flexibility.
Advice to Management: Streamline promotion pathways and improve communication across large teams to help employees feel more progress and connection within the company.

Pros: As a Project Engineer, AECOM has been great for career growth in infrastructure consulting. I've gained valuable exposure on diverse, large-scale projects. Colleagues are supportive, providing excellent mentorship for professional development. The focus on learning here is a real plus for long-term civil engineering careers.
Cons: Internal approval processes can be slow, sometimes impacting project timelines. Also, while decent, the pay and benefits are pretty average for the industry, not a standout perk for new hires.
Advice to Management: Streamlining internal approval workflows would significantly improve project efficiency and reduce frustrations for project teams. Consider reviewing compensation bands to ensure competitiveness in key markets.

Pros: As a Civil Engineer, I've worked on some really interesting infrastructure projects. The corporate environment here means good project stability. You get to learn a lot if you're proactive.
Cons: The pay structure for entry to mid-level engineering roles isn't competitive, especially in a city like Dallas, TX. Benefits are pretty standard; nothing special. I don't feel like raises really keep up with inflation or market rates.
Advice to Management: Re-evaluate salary bands for Civil Engineer roles, especially for those with several years of experience. Invest more in competitive benefits to retain talent.

Pros: I've met some really solid folks here, especially within my direct project teams. It's a huge company, so there's always a new infrastructure project for a Civil Engineer to jump on. The hybrid work model in the Los Angeles office is a big plus for work-life balance.
Cons: The overall company culture feels a bit disconnected and very corporate. It's hard to feel like part of a bigger team sometimes, especially across different departments. The internal bureaucracy can be a real drag for engineering consulting work.
Advice to Management: Try to foster more cross-departmental connections. Break down some of the internal silos to improve collaboration and make people feel more connected within this large corporate structure.

Pros: I've really valued my time as a Project Engineer. This global engineering firm offers fantastic exposure to diverse infrastructure consulting projects. The Los Angeles, CA team is supportive, with great learning opportunities. The hybrid work model provides excellent flexibility.
Cons: Internal approval processes can be slow, typical for a company of this scale, occasionally impacting project timelines. While leadership is good, more consistent communication from upper management would be beneficial.
Advice to Management: Consider streamlining some internal approval processes to improve project agility. Also, enhancing consistent communication channels from senior leadership across all teams would be really helpful for alignment.

Pros: It's a big name in the infrastructure industry, which looks good on a resume. As a Civil Engineer, I got to work on some large-scale public works projects. There's good benefits and a solid 401k plan.
Cons: The company culture can feel pretty corporate and siloed across departments. There's not a lot of flexibility for hybrid or remote work in the Denver office, which is a bummer. It's tough to feel like more than just a number sometimes.
Advice to Management: Try to foster more team cohesion and empower local management to offer better work flexibility options. It would help retain talent in engineering consulting.

Pros: As a Project Coordinator, I got to work on some pretty cool infrastructure projects. You learn a ton from the senior engineers if you ask questions. It's a solid place to get your foot in the door in the consulting engineering industry.
Cons: After a few years, career growth felt a bit stagnant in the Los Angeles office. Promotions are slow, and it's tough to move up without really pushing hard. It feels very corporate, so don't expect rapid advancement.
Advice to Management: Invest more in formal career pathing and mentorship programs, especially for mid-level employees in large-scale infrastructure projects. Don't just focus on new hires.

Pros: As a Project Engineer, I've found the hybrid work setup in the Los Angeles office pretty good. It's nice to have some remote days, which helps with commute times. My team is generally understanding if something unexpected comes up.
Cons: While hybrid is offered, it's not always super consistent across all engineering consultancy projects. Sometimes you're expected onsite more often than the policy states, especially when deadlines hit. It can feel a bit less flexible than advertised.
Advice to Management: Try to standardize the hybrid work policy more consistently across different project teams within the engineering consultancy. Clearer expectations would help everyone.

Pros: The benefits package is pretty comprehensive. As a Civil Engineer, I appreciate the good health insurance and the decent 401k match for a global engineering consultancy. We get a fair amount of PTO which is nice.
Cons: Starting salaries are just okay, not super competitive for the Los Angeles market. Raises tend to be on the smaller side, even after strong performance reviews on complex infrastructure projects. It's tough to feel like you're getting ahead financially sometimes.
Advice to Management: Re-evaluate salary bands, especially for entry and mid-level engineers in high cost-of-living areas. More competitive pay would really help retain talent.

Pros: You get to work on some really big, interesting infrastructure projects here. The variety for a civil engineering consultant is great, and there's opportunity to learn. My team in the Los Angeles office was generally supportive.
Cons: The work-life balance is pretty rough when project deadlines hit. I've often pulled 50+ hour weeks, which isn't ideal for a Project Engineer. It feels like this large corporate firm expects you to always be available.
Advice to Management: Try to enforce reasonable working hours, especially for Project Engineer roles. Burnout is real, and it impacts retention.