solar installer

foreman

site superintendent

project engineer

senior project manager

Centrica

I enjoyed working for Centrica, started working in credit control/collections working with vulnerable/high value debt customers. It was a call centre environment but we tended to monitor our own customers, small team so able to offer a more bespoke service, customers often had very large outstanding balances, businesses not doing very well, so often very stressed, angry and/or upset.
I managed my own customer base and a lot of time was spent making sure plans adhered to, If not would contact customer have the conversation and hopefully get them back on course, if not woulkd have to pursue disconnection of the supply and all that entailed.
I thoroughly enjoyed my job, was a truly great feeling when a customer you had been helping for a couple of years finally cleared their debt and they were able to move forward. 
Centrica was also a very social place to work, worked with a lot of younger people, from different backgrounds and experiences and I loved that.
The hardest part was that they decided the close our team and all collection activities and we were put onto a one stop call centre dealing with all aspects of the industry and my industry knowledge was limited as had only worked with debt, found this new call centre very stressful and to be very honest I was out of my depth. So I left Centrica, have been able to afford a few months off, was able to go to Spain for a while as have friends there. But now have to get back to work. Have decided to apply to Santander as in the city centre, which I have missed as Centrica based on Grove Farm and also it is a customer facing job, which I have never done before, but I think I would love it !

Centrica is a relatively good place to work.  Unfortunately, Centrica HQ is in the UK and the business model is VERY different in UK vs USA.   These differences are detrimental to the success of the US organization.

During my time with the company 2016 to 2022, there was a lot of change an turmoil.  Buying companies, selling companies, changing management and changing strategies.  I bit naive about some of the business they chose to pursue.

The compensation was ok.  They have a high deductable medical insurance program that was pricey.  Dental and vision coverage was marginal.  Had a 401k match (5 employee and 2.5 or 3 percent match).

Enjoyed the people I worked with and would go back of the opportunity arose.

Managers are only concerned with office politics and making themselves look good.  They will pass the blame on lower level employees and do not provide encouragement or the tools needed to do your job correctly.  Nearly everything is a hassle to get done because either people hired do not know enough about the job they were hired to do or they were hired because they have knowledge of the industry, not necessarily the department (i.e. hired to work in electricity finance because they did electricity sales, and do not know a thing about finance).

A lot of unethical activity going on and restructuring every 6 months or so.  Lots of layoffs.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Negative experiences managers who are out of their depth and not subject experts 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Deadlines put in place by company who do not know the work involved 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Close colleagues are experienced and supportive support from managers and heads of department is non existent and they are only protecting their own positions 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Generally a good experience the issues only occur when management do not agree with your decisions or work flow then intervene and pressurise to change .

being home based you learned to focus on solutions as you were mainly on your own. Any issues that arose there was always someone on the other end of the phone with many years experience.

The management were not always as helpful or approachable so we tended to keep them out of the loop wherever possible and sort things out amongst fellow co workers.
The work life balance was the worst part as the contracts had deadlines and everything was electronic the day wasnt over when you stepped through the door as folders and reports had to be completed.
compliments and relationships from tenants and interaction with co workers

Pros
	•	Exposure to energy efficiency and renewable projects
	•	Opportunities to learn project management and stakeholder engagement
	•	Chance to build individual expertise

Cons
	•	Management does not set clear expectations
	•	Inconsistent communication across teams
	•	Workplace culture lacks professionalism
	•	Many employees do the bare minimum
	•	Balancing deadlines with limited support can be stressful

Overall
Challenging environment with valuable learning opportunities, but unclear direction and weak culture can make it difficult to thrive.

Not a place for honest good hearted people looking for a good place to work. No training provided. Plenty of harassment and disability discrimination to go around!  Had a serious issue here with the director and HR and leadership swept it under the rug. They never once checked on me and then treated me as if I had done something wrong! Poor people culture.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Awful leadership.  They acquired Smartwatt and dismantled the profitable Utility programs.   

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Lack of direction and constant turnover throughout the organization. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It is a fake woke culture.  They don’t care about employees. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
No such thing.  Directions often change.

Direct Energy in NA was full of talented and good employees.  A fun place to work with a great culture.  However DE is part of a global umbrella and to bad our global owners Centrica in the UK took over the decision making and started layoffs several years ago.  Unfortunately now, not a stable work environment at our NA DE company.  We have lost some amazing individuals.  Will be a challenging rebuild ahead for DE in NA.  But wish them the best!

What is the best part of working at the company?
The only good thing was Work from home 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Management being horrible to their employees and not taking you seriously

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It’s very very very bad work environment

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Being ignored by management and looking down on you

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Solar installer 21 salaries reported	$30.14 per hour
Foreman 38 salaries reported	$37.63 per hour
Site superintendent 18 salaries reported	$97,778 per year
Project engineer 27 salaries reported	$96,481 per year
Senior project manager 11 salaries reported	$148,636 per year

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