mechanical engineer

project manager

planner

electrical designer

process engineer

Hargrove Engineers + Constructors

My typical work day would start out relaxing and quiet as I would come in at least 20-30 minutes earlier than the rest of the office. Employees were given the opportunity to come early and or stay late if extra hours needed to be procured or work to be completed. I learned how the entire company is one big team and that within the company there were sub-teams or departments of their own field of expertise that would work with each other in order to distribute projects through the use of project workbooks. Management was fierce but only to veterans of the company, to everyone else they were just and fair. The hardest part of the job in my case was that I had to learn on-the-go the field I was working in because I had no prior knowledge or experience In it. I was hired through a friend I knew who worked with them and I knew drafting but had no experience in E&I (Electrical & Instrumentation). The company was hoping that I could learn the field and excel to become a designer II within 6 months which I was unable to achieve being unfamiliar with the field and that it was my first time in an office/career experience. The most enjoyable part of the job was being able to work with others in different departments. I created several 3d instruments to implement in projects and I was actually complemented on a few for the detail and design I put into it.

Working in HR provided visibility into the gap between the company's stated values and its day-to-day practices.

Employees were expected to meet evolving and often subjective expectations while receiving limited clarity, feedback, or support. Leadership communication was inconsistent, accountability was unevenly applied, and employee concerns were frequently discussed but far less frequently resolved. 

Requests for disability accommodations were not handled in a timely or structured manner, and are often not maintained or supported effectively.

The organization often operated in a reactive state, creating unnecessary uncertainty and instability. Many of the company's challenges stem not from the people doing the work, but from leadership's inability to provide clear direction, consistent standards, and meaningful follow-through.

There are excellent employees here. They deserve better leadership. 


A typical day at work is to process incoming transmittals from the engineering firm over the project and to make certain the documentation is then transmitted to the appropriate contractor for the particular phase of the job, process incoming submittals and RFIs and follow up on and close these out once they are resolved.  I have to make certain all drawings and documents are up to date and generate a hard copy library of all current and superseded documents.  This was my first experience on a large construction project and it was very challenging learning a new document system and struggling to keep up with the demands of the job but everyone pitched in to assist and we worked as a real team.  The electronic document system was new to all of us but we learned it together and still got the job done. The team I work with is exceptional and I have enjoyed working with all of them.  I have the most patient and understanding construction project manager.  He saw the difficulties we all were having with the system and helped all of us to work through the hardships.

Ownership is by profession a piping designer which has hired engineers, et. al.  The owner is friendly, but I always considered the setup a bit curious.  Depending on which discipline you are, first level management may be very good or bad.  It will be quickly evident when you enter the organization.  Younger engineers are given more responsibility than what they may be ready for relative to life experience or more importantly professional experience.  Real problems in plants are not necessarily solved by what you learned in school.  (Real world vs. classroom experience is lacking.)  Experienced, seasoned engineers are held with less regard than 1-3 year engineers and often projects are bid reflecting this as the main driver is market share whether the company makes a profit or not.  For example, they will adhere to a man hour estimate, but will blow the $ budget.  This may work in the short term, but is not a recipe for long term EPC success.

I enjoyed working at Hargrove as long as I had Billable hours. Middle management is cliquish. With much of my department working out of state and 9 of my coworkers on overhead I was put out on less than truthful circumstances. Sent out to work for a satellite office accusations about my work ethic of a false nature where made. It was suggested by a friend that I sue them and a lawyers name was provided to me. Being a Christian and trusting God would work out the details I declined to do that. I was further insulted by the lack of due process and the forfeiture of 40 hours vacation time I had accrued. Most disappointing of all is it seems I may be on a blacklist for employment in the Mobile Al. To be realistic it all came down to one fellow not liking me. If upper management had known the full story I'm quite certain they would have been disappointed concerning their espoused creed.

What is the best part of working at the company?
1-4 day work week
2-good pay
3-good use of technology

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The most stressful part of th ejob is not knowing if management is satisfied with your performance or not.  Hargrove has a 4 part plan for terminating employees.  It is highly subjective and secretive.  IN fact, the employee is unaware of a problem until the 3rd phase.  Its a ridiculous and insulting process.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Very Team oriented, to a fault.  Everyone is a "team mate".  It feels contrived and fake to most everyone.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Once at work, there are usually several meetings.  Also there is useful coordination with the various members of the project teams.

I enjoyed the atmosphere in the office and working with the other employees.  My issue was communication issues with my direct supervisor in a branch office.  I was told that we were all a team, yet management did not really help their teammates to become successful.  Supervisor was supposed to be coaching and mentoring me, but was very confrontational and petty.  Any issue with performance, even minor, constitutes a write up followed by termination.  No warning given at all.  Dishonesty is a trademark of management and HR with this company.  Human Resources does NOT have your back if any issue arises with your supervisor/manager.  My advice is to pass this company by if you value trust and honesty in dealing with management.

Being hired on at Hargrove is a trial by fire. You receive very little training on company processes and policies, and your assigned mentor is often to busy to answer questions. Everyone here is very busy, and the written procedures often vary from what is actually used in practice. That being said, it is a great place to work once you learn the processes (more or less by guessing and getting your hand slapped). It's easy for a company to say that it's a "Team Atmosphere" but not many of those companies have the workplace environment to back it up. Hargrove does. Despite most people being incredibly busy, everyone is willing to help out when they have the time. Schedules are very flexible, and I am able to work from home whenever I need to. Benefits are passable, but that's all that can be said about them.

This role is not necessary at this time, what is necessary is a complete reorganization of Human Resources by an outside third-party consulting firm. Hargrove is growing faster than the skillset of the HR team suggestions from outsiders coming in on how to do things better will not be heard. A lot of Groupthink going on within the leadership of the department. This role, it's a clean-up role and a role where you will be a lamb sacrifice when fingers go to pointing. The proof is in the fact that nobody lasts in this role. You will be placed in a position to "manage data integrity" but basically you are cleaning up inaccuracies of other people's incompetence. I highly recommend you looking elsewhere while Hargrove is a good company but a lot depends on where you work within the organization.

Lots of great disciplines work here.  Unfortunately the management folks come and go through a revolving door. 

This makes it hard to win work, execute work, and have consistent expectations with disciplines across the board.  

IT was great and you lacked for nothing in the way of equipment/software to do the job.

Retirement was a negative.  ESOP replaces half of the typical 401k match and then a long vesting schedule for the 401k match.  Great for the owners of the company but not so much for the minions.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Mechanical engineer 10 salaries reported	$147,220 per year
Project manager 17 salaries reported	$157,382 per year
Planner 12 salaries reported	$50.96 per hour
Electrical designer 3 salaries reported	$60.83 per hour
Process engineer 3 salaries reported	$131,519 per year

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