BAE Systems

"They claim DEI is a big deal and that they want to improve the company for women and people of color. However it's nothing more than lip service. Most of the male managers don't really care. They use the diversity of thought argument (this even got said to me in a meeting once). The senior leadership are all married to women who don't work, and it shows in how women are treated, especially returning from maternity leave. After maternity leave, be prepared to have to work harder than before to prove yourself that you can handle the work. Because your boss (if he's like mine) assumes that all marriages work like his does and you're not only working full time but doing all the housework and childcare. Be prepared for snide remarks, gaslighting, your manager refusing to do basic job duties, not responding to emails or even looking at deliverables he asked for, amongst other things.Most everyone else is ok though. The work is relatively interesting. But be wary of the male managers. Most of them are jerks."

"Don’t work here. Horrible place that really messed up my physical and mental health. Low pay, sexism, bad hours. Avoid. "

"BAE Systems us a great company that I would wholeheartedly recommend. Women are represented in leadership at all levels of the organization and the number of women at the top continues to rise. What is most impressive in my opinion is the company’s culture of supporting and developing women leaders. BAE Systems’ commitment to women is not only seen but felt and they continue to make progress. "

"There are still too few women in leadership roles, but the company is trying to change. It’s a good time to be a part of the change, and shape the future. "

"Large company - the experience varies across departments. In general, the work is rewarding, but the life-work balance is almost nonexistent. "

"If your new into your career avoid at all cost. Coworkers at least in my department were extremely cold hearted. "

"No one will develop you; you have to work to develop yourself, seek out opportunities, mentors, and programs to get ahead. No one will do it for you."

"It can be an awesome place if you get into the right working group. Otherwise you have to find the right sponsor to get you out and into a great one. Follow on to the CEO supporting diversity: in theory, yes; in practice, not so much. "

"Flexible work environment and good, kind community. Great, smart colleagues. Overall, however, the company is slow to embrace change, preferring the status quo to progression. "

"Flexible hours can be tough for women working on projects that require being in a secure environment. "

"I love the technical challenges of my job in the R&D group."

"Over the past few years, I've seen more and more women move up into section lead and other leadership roles. I would say that 30% of my peers as a manager are women. Yes, there is an imbalance of women in the workplace AND in leadership roles, but that's because engineering is a male-dominated industry! "

"You work for your boss...to make him/her look good and take all the credit. If you're okay being behind the scenes and not appreciated by upper management, then this is a good place for you. "

"This employer is not flexible nor are they focused on employee needs or seem to care about the actual employee."

"Don't expect work life balance, also the maternity leave here is the bare minimum."

"I work in one particular site in the UK which is historically very male orientated, but think this is better at other sites."

"BAE has worked hard over the last 5 years to improve the environment for women, and has made progress. However, it is still a place where women are in the minority, and where unconscious, and sometime conscious, bias rules. Participants at the unconscious bias training mandated for managers that I attended very explicitly stated that they didn't believe in the concept, and thought that it was simply a way to encourage quotas. In coaching sessions, women are encouraged to tolerate "top gun" behavior by a small number colleagues - because those are the "high energy" people that have management's ear. On the flip side, most colleagues are smart, and friendly once you get to know them."

"As with most organizations, advancement beyond middle management ranks is more difficult here for women than for men. While there is strong emphasis on ethical conduct, there is an almost astounding lack of awareness about how skewed the assessment of potential and performance is toward men. The company's flexible work arrangements are very good but still in many pockets one is viewed as uncommitted if actually leveraging them, and there are the usual concerns about impact on advancement opportunity. Maternity leave appears to be well-accommodated but re-entry is not always the easiest. Benefits overall are good, colleagues well-meaning and good people, and I've been impressed with everyone's dedication to whatever part they play in the company's mission. Women in leadership roles...there are a few, and the company seems committed to improving their demographics."

"That there are challenges to advancement."

"I wouldnt recommend this place for women."

"My experience has shown me that those who do work will always be the ones doing all the work while those who don't aren't expected to nor is the problem addressed. As a person with no kids it seems like I'm expected to make up for those who have outside family obligations."

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"I worked there for five years and the company was a travesty to work for since they hired Linda Hudson. You would think having a woman CEO who is a mom would make it a better company for work/life balance but it didn't. They keep restructuring departments, giving more work to the people who manage not to get laid off and have a general loss of direction, so it's hard to support management or believe in the company. I worked directly in both the CEO's office and for the heads of a business unit."

"Men are still the bigger bread winners."

"I agree with the lack of females in leadership positions. However, the ones who are in leadership positions seems to receive little support from upper management."

"There is a lot of unacknowledged gender bias here you will have to overcome to succeed. Your experience will be determined by the group you work with."

"Women are mainly in support roles-it's a male dominated company. Very little encouragement by the company to advance-some have been in the same role for over 20 years."

"Given the size of the company, any individual's experience will be shaped largely by your manager and program areas in which you work. Although the company promotes diversity, etc., it is still very much a male dominated environment. This is perhaps inherent to the industry to a degree."

"It was great when I first started working here and did not have kids. After having a child, I was immediately put on the "mommy track," which means no advancement indefinitely. After being here for 7 years without a promotion and subpar raises, I watch my income shrink while my male colleagues climb the ladder. As soon as you talk about leaving because of the lack of advancement opportunities, you are pulled in an office and told how valuable you are and that you will be advanced only to find yourself in the same spot next time promotions are handed out. If you are a mother, expect long hours away from your kids. That flexible work schedule is not very flexible and 10 hour work days (1 hr for lunch) are mandatory, since we are on a 9/80 schedule company wide. Expect that anything you do for your family that takes away time from the workplace will be frowned upon...unless you are male...then you are looked at as such a "great father.""