Cisco reviews

1. First level and second level managers are inept. They have no leadership skills at all and do not care about employee growth. Its something to wonder about as to how they are rated. 2. Too much politics in the departments: whether you move up depends on who you know. 3. No transparency in review process or in compensation. 4. No consistency in work hours: some people work hard for only 3 months in the whole year. Whereas there are departments where the midnight oil is burnt almost throughout the year. 5. Officially supposed to encourage movement within the company. However the reality is that most jobs are filled by someone who the manager knows, even before the requisition is officially out.

I don't know where the many people who wrote reviews here work who said there is good work/life balance because I've never seen it. I have never worked less than 55 hrs/week and often 80+ hrs. There absolutely are duds here who are great at talking non-stop and so get recognized but they don't do anything. I get frustrated working at a high tech company and constantly get asked stupid questions about how to use Excel or PowerPoint or things they can easily look up themselves. How can someone get a job here and not know computer basics is beyond me. Just because they're busy doesn't mean they're productive (basic computer skills would be a great improvement). I also don't like the performance review system which many others mentioned. It's an absolute joke (and not a good one). Your score has little to do with the quality of your work, but how much your manager likes you, how much work s/he is willing to do to help you get ahead, and how lazy they are. I've had managers tell me they never give an X (the highest score) no matter what you do and everyone gets the same rating because it's easier for the manager. I was fortunate to finally get a promotion last year (and two raises) but it was a horrific, butt-kissing process. I've had over 15 CAP awards over the years but none of that seems to matter. You can do the exact same work for manager A and get a E score but then move to manager B and get an X, it makes no sense and there is no oversight or standards.