I am a new grad who recently accepted an offer to start at a GM innovation center outside of Michigan. What does this mean? Will it be really different than the perks outlined(Raises twice a year, 401k matching, Tuition Reimbursement for masters...ect)?
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Michigan is dead
Wow, you guys are seriously undercutting yourself. No wonder they want the youth.
Your argument might be, of course, we can do more with less. Experience shows, you'll do the job three times to get it right, when the experienced will do so the first time correct. The ignorant managers, will never know. I've witnessed this first hand, many times. They aren't efficiency people.
The bean counters haven't figured this out. Take what you can. Like the egg timer post states, each position has a shelf life.
Sounds right there have been retention issues with talented IT at GM. At GM I have observed 64k start; 68k year later; 72k year later. BTW this is way below mark for talented IT. My son started at UPS in Atlanta at 65k two years ago. He is now at 86k. He worked his heart out received 15% bumps each year. He is a Java developer and lives to code. He does have less productive coworkers who received 5% bumps. He has friends at FANG companies that after 2 years are at 110K. I guess what I am trying to say is if you are planning to really make a mark and be compensated commensurately GM might not live up to that. Everyone around you knows they are getting 6% no matter what they do. Give it a try and see how the shoe fits.
The offer letter states there are raises twice a year. A 3% increase every 6 months for the first 3 years
Not sure who told you there are raises twice of year, because that is not the case. Once a year. That is unless they are bringing you in below the minimum salary for your job grade - in which case you are getting hosed. Anyone that makes the minimum for the job grade gets evaluated and given possible increase once a year, however as odd as it seems they actually do pay people below what hr deems the minimum pay for each grade.
The last poster just demonstrated the intellectual capital of GM. The only arrow in the quiver is blame angry white old male. It is always some other dude’s fault; I myself am special and a self-proclaimed genius. The last poster is likely an H1B who repeatedly was released at US companies requiring actual work; found a position at GM and is attending uni while pretending to work at GM. He is most likely fearful that his gravy train is about to dry up, and he will be sent back to what he refers to as his sxxxhole country of origin.
Another silly juvenile Anglo diatribe against GM.
After 9/11, it was GM that kept America from Recession.
But it is YOU who sold US jobs to foreigners in order to fund a blustering in-your-face militaristic foreign policy.
Why?
Because of a deep psychological need, preferring War to Peace.
GM did not put a gun to the head of USG to sink 7 trillion dollars in sh-- hole countries while health care and education and infrastructure deteriorated over 4 decades.
YOU did it to YOURSELVES, and not GM.
OP is in Austin. OP is software developer. The Austin economy is diversified it is not auto centric.
There are some world class software talent residing in Austin. If OP is a CS not MIS, then OP should not stay long at GM.
When OP has a bit of experience and knows software is OP passion, OP should look at some of the software companies with a presence in Austin.
While you are at GM pay attention to which companies wrote the software you are using daily. Become an expert on that software, attend Texas user group meetings for that software while there network with the people who wrote that software. To grow you need to find and associate with like minded people.
I agree with Frogman in that how a company treats others in the past is an indicator of how it will treat others in the future. A company is a collection of people who work at a company.
A bit of history that repeats -
GM decides to source fabric for its cars from non USA low cost providers - USA mill workers and fabricators lose their jobs, Milltowns become ghost towns, GM plant workers smirk and say oh you guys are just jealous of us,
GM decides to source steel for its cars from non USA low cost providers - USA steel workers and fabricators lose their jobs, Steel towns become ghost towns, GM plant workers smirk and say oh you guys are just jealous of us,
GM decides to outsource IT work to India and hire low cost H1B instead of USA workers, GM plant workers smirk and say oh you guys are just jealous of us,
GM decides to shutter USA plants, GM plant workers scream about the unfairness of it all and how everyone in USA needs to drive a GM car. They say this while wearing a wardrobe of which nothing was made in the USA - where 30 years ago all of their wardrobe would be USA made.
GM workers stood idly by when their fellow countrymen’s wages and livelihoods were taken to line the pockets of GM executives. GM workers would be foolish to think that those fellow countrymen will now rush to their aide. Their countrymen realize that long ago GM ceased to support USA workers and economy.
OP will soon learn for himself/herself the opinion the software industry as a whole holds of GM software developers and can choose his/her path accordingly.
Wow lots of advice. You can tell who works at GM by the way they write. Remember when the big three goes down all the little trinket auto suppliers go down. Auto suppliers are slaves to the big three who are always dropping quality and charging more for each car. A good example of how a company is, is to see how they treat their people in times like today. GM is shrinking and hosing its employees. Even the buyouts of employees are getting cheaper. Take a clue look at what is going on right now. Loyal dedicated hardworking employees getting the shaft. You too can become one of them if you are not in the right group. Most incompetent employees are protected by the good ole boy network. After a few years you will be black balled and no legitimate company will hire you. It's best to work for GM after you made a few rounds out in the real world then you can settle in and become brain dead. Good Luck. I love it when I catch a persons nerve when I write actual life experiences.
Great advice guys thanks. I would be working as a software developer in the Austin office. I definitely want to be in a place where I can grow as a developer, and maybe take advantage of the tuition reimbursement. The 3% raise every 6 months is decent too.
get ready for blood bath in the auto industry that includes every company (GM Ford already announced) but lot of companies are doing cuts under the radar....
Expect Michigan to go under as everything will slide as the stock market slides
dow is set to decline 50% from current levels so I know what the CEOs gonna do....put more heads on the chopping block if it is publicly traded...
the whole USA market is going down and will be down into 2023...
For what it is worth. I have worked in many companies. Military spouse so movement was required.
The smallest size was 15 employees the largest was 500,000 employees.
One disadvantage of working at a smaller company is that you cannot hide. You are held accountable. If you cannot perform after you are trained and coached you will be cut. There are no medals for showing up. You will not be spoon fed pablum.
That disadvantage is also an advantage. At one small company the owner stopped by my desk on a Monday morning and handed me a check for $33,333 and thanked me for working all weekend to track down and fix a costly code bug. He had heard 33 was my favorite number.
The uber tiny were not my favorite as they tended to be on the non-professional side (either primarily all family members — or a founder and his buddies). I did learn a lot in those jobs, the environment was just not me.
The small to mid size companies were bar none the best for professional growth. If you had the will and a good attitude you could accomplish whatever you set your mind to.
The mega-size financial institution I worked for was well run. It had some large Corp issues but nothing like GM. I worked there as an experienced hire. I would not recommend starting a career in such a large Corp.
At GM one feels like every task you must tote along a 50 pound anchor. If you are accustomed to sprinting it soon becomes one long slough. There are many who have mastered the GM political machine. Everyday I observe people doing their MBA coursework instead of their jobs. They toss off blame for their incomplete work onto others or claim they are too busy working on some special project. They feel entitled to be paid to attend University.
To be fair there are also true believers and diligent workers at GM. It will all depend on what group you get dropped into. Decide what your values are and stay true to them. It is a slippery slope, once you adopt one small behavior, the next one is easier to adopt.... I think this is what has happened gradually to many GM employees old and new. You can spot them as they are the ones talking about benefits owed to them, not what they contribute on a daily basis. The people who talk about actual ideas and actually create solutions are the people to hang with, give the others a wide berth .
Yup. Go right ahead and work for one of those miserable faction-ridden small companies that will lay you off in a heart beat when going gets tough.
They will give you a pittance on 401K, if at all, will have no formal evaluation process, no bonuses, no tuition reimbursements, no nothing.
Frogman should be ignored. So do the two Anonymous commentators who do not seem to have any experience with professional life in small to midsize companies.
They are almost certainly part of that generation of Americans who took the good life that GM and others like it provided for granted and proceeded to b--ch and moan it into oblivion.
The truth of the matter is that if you stay at GM for any length of time no fast moving dynamic innovative company will hire you. You will have BIg 3 taint. Other companies know how GM operates.
If however you work at a smaller more dynamic company, GM will recruit you later in your career pay you more handsomely than you ever would of been paid working solely at GM.
At a smaller company you will actually get to do all pieces of a project. You will have the opportunity to grow quickly and be more well rounded. At a smaller company everyone supports each other and cheers each other on. You don’t see the team non-Anglo sabatoging team Anglo and vice versa.
The minions who enjoy repetitive tasks and processes thrive at GM. Only you know if that is what you enjoy.
So welcome. But do watch your six in the office. Your gut will tell you pretty quickly whether GM is a fit for you. Don’t get too comfortable and leave before your only option is another company like GM.
Somewhere in one of these threads someone said start the egg timer once you get there. GM can be a good place to get your intro to the corporate world and learn some things as a new hire. A lot of your experience depends on the people you work with. Even post-bankruptcy there are a lot of pre-bankruptcy habits that never left GM. Do your best to avoid those as your new “norm” because when you leave GM at some point you will realize what personal accountability really is and what being a professional really is, not just the rhetoric told to you in company meetings.
Learn. Take advantage of tuition reimbursement or the TEP. Build your credentials and become good at something technical. Project management or Business Analyst work can be done by anyone if you are in IT. If you’re in manufacturing learn what is changing the manufacturing landscape. If you are in engineering, get on as many specialty groups or innovation teams as possible. Just doing your job is not enough.
All this and I would say 5 years max or diminishing returns starts to creep in.
Frogman is usually right on in all his comments. He has been through the realm of the corporate world. Do listen to all commenters. You will learn the most from them. Company pumpers are still employed by this dinosaur of a company. It's an old blue chip company with no future. If you like to stagnate congrats to you and GM. If you like innovation, change, action move on to a smaller more dynamic company. You will become brain dead at GM. Your contributions will be miniscule compared to the smaller more adept to change company. It's your choice.
As I wrote before, ignore the juvenile cynicism of Anglos such as this commentator called "Frogman".
GM remains one of the best employers in US and it has continuously improved itself over more than 20 years.
Really, I am not sure what it is with these old Anglos, they are not in high school any longer.
Although your stock has been stagnant, don't worry be happy. 2019 will be even worse. This company is slowing shrinking. All the great people have retired, been axed, moved on or have died. Consider yourself special even as a new hire. Your dysfunctional management believes you are the best of the best. You must have a grade point average of 4.95 I personally think that you are a great salesman at getting GM to hire you. Congrats.
Rumor and innuendo does work in this life. Polish your nose and get on track and learn this from your mentors. You may think your special but really you are the s---er for being manipulated and coerced into doing more for less. Your paycheck may be great but your personal accomplishments thus far will be diminished. Have a great 2019. You have made it more difficult to find another position before we dive into a recession this time next year. Being employed at an auto company is like being employed by the government. It will be difficult to find another position after working there. It will not be very nice.
If you have other roughly equivalent options you might want to consider them. I agree with other poster you will be ok for 2019 assuming your offer is not rescinded. Decide if you will enjoy the volatility. life at GM will be continually worrying about the next lay-off.
Remember to keep in touch with your school mates one of the best ways to learn about better and more stable future opportunities.
Stay on the technical track and learn as much as you can all the time.
Volunteer for any and all opportunities to help your leadership or other teams or team members.
Be very frank with yourself as well as others on what you can or cannot do.
Do not pick up fights and ignore the Anglo naysayers with their juvenile cynicism.
Stash as much money away as you can; buy your vehicles in cash and pre-pay the mortgage.
Maintain a healthy commitment to the company and always do a bang up job in your tasks and assignments.
Be very polite to everone.
You have little to worry about as a new college hire. The worst thing that could happen to you is the job offer being rescinded. The layoffs had been known for months now, so if they hired you anytime between beginning of October through present day it would be unlikely for them to do that.
Unless you signed a contract stating otherwise, everything offered is conditional. They likely won't touch the standard employee benefits in 2019. That includes holidays, vacation time, 401k, medical, dental, vision. All of the discretionary benefits (job promotions, salary raises, tuition reimbursement, etc.) would be at risk or at least placed under much tighter scrutiny.
Be smart and save as much as you can as soon as you can. Their were never any guarantees in life and even less so today. Your shelf like is short and getting shorter all the time, while the debt that you took on to get your degree is becoming harder for many to pay off. Whether it is GM or any other company when it comes time to cut back they will start with older workers first and while that isn't you today, it will be tomorrow.
I like the egg timer example. That's pretty good, and looking back, does appear to be kind of true.
All three of the perks you describe are subject to change at anytime. Historically they have changed and have been revoked and sometime later reinstated, revoked, reinstated, revoked, reinstated. Raise is a relative thing. They are nearly always less than inflation after first year.
The best advice I was given as a new hire was by a older coworker who bequeathed me an egg timer. He told me that any engineer will only be valued for 4 to 6 years. Save half your salary, never take on debt, always keep your skills current and be ready at a moments notice to jump ship.
The GM recruiter told my hiring class they needed our new blood, ideas and energy we would be valued and transform GM. We were riding high for 2 years then it tapered off and now 6 years on the egg timer has rang.