Black & Veatch Employee Job Reviews in the United States

"Worst company culture ever!! Extremely toxic and terrible people run this place. And the horrible leadership passes on its toxicity and hostility to the employees. I would avoid this company if I knew how awful it is."

"The communication was a mess- important information was always a game of telephone, and I often felt like I was working in a vacuum. My supervisor was inconsistent and often made decisions without consulting me, which led to a lot of confusion and frustration. The overall culture at Black & Veatch was imperialistic and hierarchical, and I felt like my voice was never heard."

"Some managers were horrible. They didn't want to come to the office but expected their subordinated to do the same. They were also quick to find faults and play blame games. Their habit of lying blatantly and taking credit for someone else's hard work was also irritating."

"Good company to work for, world wide lots of opportunities."

"Great place to work. Friendly people"

"Great organization for diversified career growth. Work life balance and rich culture"

"Worked for B&V from 2016 to 2019 when I was part of a world-wide layoff. Good company, but not sure of direction"

"It's a great place to work for."

"Black & Veatch is a very reputable company. They are known as the Cadillac of engineering firms."

"Horrible"

What do you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"The office is close to a lot of good restaurants."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Avoid it at all costs. No matter how desperate you may be."

What don't you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"It is mind boggling that a company as reputable as Black & Veatch (BV) could have assembled a more incompetent group of individuals as in this office. There is not a single employee in any management position that is qualified for their role (from project manager and up). This is evidenced by the posting of employees resumes on the companys intranet. Its a land of misfits. Less than ten percent have a post secondary degree or any work experience supporting their role as PMs, engineers or managers, on any level at any company. Let alone one the size and stature of BV. But as it is said it is not what you know, but who.Ignorance abounds by every sense of the word. And most of the employees would have to look it up to understand. There is clearly no training of management staff, in ethics, trust and respect or even in the simplest of project management practices. BV HR and Corporate management should be embarrassed and scared by this staff. How BV is not in a lawsuit yet is a miracle. Violations of the companys code of conduct are a daily occurrence. Conflict is everywhere, especially amongst and between Market Managers and Project Managers. Not a single individual comprehends conflict resolution (internally or externally). In the words of the Turf Director, during one of the many incidences of conflict in the officeJust deal with it. Well handled.There is no accountability, those who dont get promoted to higher positions. Market Managers and Project managers alike have no training in the PM processes, they lack integrity, the ability to inspire and provide vision, have no team building or problem solving skills. If a problem arises they push it down the chain. Bullying is a common occurrence amongst the Market Manager and Project Managers. There is a lack of respect and fair treatment of others that is a direct violation of the companies code of conduct, policies, mission and fair labor practice. Its hard to believe that BV tolerates it. Somehow these people feel they will get what they want by intimidation, yelling and screaming and belittling others. What they clearly are too obtuse to see is that they are thought of as crying little babies that that are clearly not intelligent enough to understand the simplest of tasks and have no problem solving skills. You have ONE client and 95% of the projects are the same. How much easier can it get!The turn over is incredible, people get so tired of the constant bullying that the just get up and leave. And that has become known in the area as BV cannot fill the vacant positions.How BV maintains it ISO 9000 status is amazing. There are no standard processes or procedures. There is no training program for new or existing employees. Everyone does the same tasks differently so its impossible to understand whats going, where something is or how to o your job. This explains the constant fire fights and lack of organization. Again 95% of the projects are the same.But the almighty dollar rules and this office apparently makes money off there ONE client AT&T. That is only because their counter parts at AT&T arebelieve it or noteven less capable of doing their jobs, less capable of managing a project. But alas, BVs good fortune is coming to an end as they lost half their contract to a competitor. In three years, when their AT&T contract ends, BV will be no existent in the Pittsburgh market."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Clean house, start over, provide traing, get your own training."

What do you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"The company is focused on value creation and teamwork is vital to this focus."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Be sure to discuss how your skillset aligns with their growth objectives."

What don't you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"I can not think of any major drawbacks to working at B&V. I like it here."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"That is difficult to say. B&V is on track for impressive growth and they are doing a good job in growing it's work force without sacrificing the focus on value."

What do you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"Some people tried to do the right thing even if they were loosing the battle"

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Do not rely on what is presented in the interviews! Go elsewhere if you can!"

What don't you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"Poor ethical conduct by management. But, they held lower staff to a higher standard."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Break up the good ol' boy network! Hire professionals and let them do their work!"

What do you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"the culture and support is top notch and family oriented"

What don't you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"fluctuating work load and uncertain future regarding jobs with clients"

What suggestions do you have for management?

"keep staff better informed of changing contract issues with clientele"

"Consider working elsewhere!!!"

What do you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"BV can offer a steady paycheck. But not much else. There a lot of very knowledgeble and friendly people in the company. However, you probably won't find them in any positions of major influence. The company is very laid back, and they can be very flexible with people's schedules. This of course will depend entirely on who you work for. BV also has a stellar industry reputation (some of it undeserved) which will always help to build up someones resume."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Go work elsewhere. BV no longer has the right to consider itself an engineering company, since nearly 100% of it's design work is outsourced to third party vendors. Very little true engineering work is done internally anymore. It is now more of a project management company, although this will be denied by anyone and everyone working there. There are also very few middle aged engineers in the company. The age spectrum is either very young (20's/early 30's) or much older (over 50). The gray haired engineers are vested and riding it out until they retire, even though most are drastically underpaid. The younger engineers were hired because they're cheap, and the company still needs employees. But the more experienced and mid-career employees are often non-existant, because they've all gone to work for better companies. Once the gray haired employees finally retire, BV will have serious issues regarding it's overall performance, since they'll no longer have the expertise to carry the company forward. This company is an old boys click, through and through. Turnover is also quite high (at least higher than at most engineering companies) since many employees are often taking jobs at the company while they wait for something better to come along. If you're fresh out of school, or at least at the beginning of your career, BV is probably a very good company to work for. They will train you, and then you can quit for a better job at one of their better paying competitors."

What don't you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"The company is completely unwilling to invest in its employees, whether it's further education or industry certifications. For the most part, employees whom already have a college degree are expected to pay for any continuing education themselves. BV is primarily an engineering company (or at least they still think they are), but they don't provide any assistance with gaining a PE license. Management and leadership at the company is also abysmal. Engineers often don't make good managers, and many managers refuse to hire people more qualified than themselves. Additionally, much of the promoting and hiring within the company is entirely based on past professional and personal relationships, rather than being based on credentials and performance. Politics rule the day at this company. And if you're not a policitian, your options are limited. Nearly all employees are intiially hired on as contractors, and despite being told contract durations will only last around 6 months before being made permanent, many employees will see their contract status extended indefinitely"

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Go away!!!! BV has serious management issues, and only tends to either promote the wrong people, or only hire insiders connected to other senior level employees at previous companies. In other words, the old problems that existed in other companies in the past continue to resurface at BV. Much of BV management relies on bullying and intimidation. In other words, a blast from the past, like something out of the tv series Mad Men."

"Bad Business Practices / Ethics"

What do you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"Locations, standard benefits and pay, some opportunities to travel and work on location."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"If you have other viable options, suggest that you pass on B&V. They have a lot of internal issues and no resolutions in sight."

What don't you like about working at Black & Veatch?

"Too much politics, not enough open communication between management and their professionals and hard work. B&V has issues with business ethics as well (probably because of all the politics that goes on), and while their recruiters try to make them appear current, B&V is old school across the board (total good ol' boys club)."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Become better listeners, treat your professionals like you would like to be treated: open and honestly and with respect and dignity. Less ego, more putting the job first."