I work at UC Synergetic (UCS), in the Mansfield, MA office and I am presently seeking employment elsewhere. This company is very poorly run and they have an astounding turnover rate that proves it. The management team has absolutely no leadership capabilities and they are driven by greed alone. Every dollar is funneled back to the corporate overlord, Pike Electric, so that UCS management can reap performance bonuses. Word of record breaking profits trickles down to UCS staff each year, yet there are no pay increases, no investment in computers, software or professional development. They have no understanding of how to motivate and reward staff and fail at every opportunity to build a positive, respectable corporate culture.
Nepotism is rampant. Almost everyone in a position of authority at UCS/Mansfield is either a family member or high school friend (or wife) of the office manager. These friends and family members enjoy a completely different set of rules than the other employees. They are compensated at a higher level and routinely leave the office whenever the weather is nice. They have no special skills or education in the field of telecommunications. They are simply “connected.” Meanwhile the “common” employees are expected to work to the final minute and have not seen pay increases in years. Management does not give incentive bonuses of any kind, except possibly to themselves.
The lack of internal communication is appalling at UCS. I have worked here for years and have never seen a positive, motivating or congratulatory email from management. In fact, they do not send out communicative office-wide emails on any topic. They keep people in the dark and suppress their employees at every turn. If you have an idea for improving a process, they will squash it and tell you to get back to work. If you try to contribute ideas outside of your job description, they will nod in agreement but won’t actually allow you to implement them. This is a group of small-thinking opportunists without any formal leadership or mentoring skills. Management is most passionate about protecting their positions with no regard for building a cohesive, productive team. The UCS tag line speaks of innovation, yet it is simply talk and not reality. There is little, if any, innovative thinking or execution of new ideas at UC Synergetic.
The staff mix at UCS is mostly young people in their 20’s and older workers, 50 and above. There are very few people in their 30’s and 40’s here --people in the prime of their careers. The turnover rate is very high, perpetuating deep attitudinal problems and resentment towards management for not investing in their human capital. Most of the younger workers don’t know what a progressive company is like yet, so they tolerate the insulting compensation and minimal benefits. (You earn 10 days per year of paid time off, which is supposed to cover any personal or sick downtime, as well as vacation.) They have no official “sick time” allocation, which skirts around the Massachusetts law requiring that employers provide it. They’re allowed to do so by saying that your 80 hours per year is inclusive of vacation and sick time. It is a terrible policy making a work/life balance nearly impossible.
The single positive aspect of working at UCS is leaving at the end of the day. The office closes at 4:00 PM and there is a stampede of workers exiting the building at that time. It’s a testament to the shameful lack of culture and camaraderie when employees run for the door at quitting time. Try leaving before 4:00 PM and you will be chastised, unless of course, you are a friend or family member of the office manager. They can come and go at will. And they do.
If you are considering employment with this firm, you should seriously weigh other options. UC Synergetic offers a career road block with low pay, sub-standard benefits, no mentoring or potential upward movement, and a dismissive management team that lines their pockets at the expense of anyone foolish enough to work for them.