event coordinator

it technician

customer service/data entry

customer service/sales representative

technician

Smart City Networks

Working at the Charlotte Convention Center through Smart City will give you real-world experience, no doubt. You’ll be installing internet for trade shows—running hardlines, setting up Wi-Fi, and dealing with fast-paced environments where things need to get done.

But outside of that, the environment is difficult to work in.

There’s little to no training. You’re mostly expected to figure things out on your own, with some help here and there if you ask. For a company that’s been around this long, that shouldn’t be the case.

Management is where most of the issues come from. There’s a lack of communication, accountability, and structure. Tasks get pushed off until the last minute, expectations aren’t always clear, and you’re often expected to just “know” what needs to be done without being told directly.

A lot of the workload falls on you as an individual. There isn’t really a strong team dynamic or cross-training, so if something doesn’t get done, it reflects on you, even if the situation could’ve been avoided with better planning or communication.

There were also moments where professionalism felt off. For example, being asked early on to hold things down alone so personal matters could be handled, instead of having proper coverage. Situations like that make it clear how much the role depends on you, whether you’re prepared for it or not.

If you take this job, treat it as a stepping stone. You will gain valuable experience, but it’s what you make of it.

Be proactive. Ask for floor plans early. Stay ahead of installs. Don’t wait around for direction because it may not come when you need it. And don’t buy into unnecessary urgency. Focus on doing things right, not just fast.

Also, set boundaries. This isn’t a traditional Monday through Friday 9–5 job, and if you don’t establish limits early, the expectations can easily get out of hand. For context, I was working a Tuesday through Saturday Schedule the entire time I was here. And if there were events brought up at the last minute that take place on the weekend, I was expected to cover them. Which wasn't fair.

At the end of the day, everyone’s experience is different. This was mine. You might have a better one depending on the situation and location. But at least now you know what you could be walking into.

Smart City Networks is a decent company to work for the most part; daily functions may include unlocking a password for a user;s email via Active Directory, installation of few network lines for a room of computers, setting up wireless for a few users, or setting up a full network (LAN and Wireless) for a large show. I learned a lot of what I currently know about networking there. The management structure is pretty solid, yet I cannot really speak on it, because a lot that transpires in management is not made known to those not involved in management.

In terms of co-workers, it nice to get together with some of the co-workers and get the big shows installed and configured from a networking standpoint. The most difficult part of the job in my view, would be the very complicated physical network installation for some very large conventions and shows - CES 2013 was one them. There were thousands of orders, and the physical obstacles that sometimes present themselves during installation were ever-present during the install, yet the show got done, and all was well.

As for the most enjoyable part of the job, I would have to say it comes in the form of solving the network-related issues that occur and seeing that the overall network setup (physical to backend) is running smoothly.

This was a fun, and good culture. They love thier employees, customers and their community which shows what a great company they are. 
1. You set up conventions calls and follow up with your existing and new customers. 
2.  Meet deadline emails and reduced pricing  set up dates while making sure to commicate the convention teams and getting mandatory emails and calls out to make sure that the company meets their goals and objectives.
3. The employees are great and work together as a team and most have been there for years.
4. Management is exceptional. They make sure that you are informed and they sit down with you and provide you with your job path and what to do to successfully get the job done. 
5. I learned that the job is very detailed and mistakes will cost everyone money so I like the fact they check your work before they set you free but are always there to help and show you how to find the information in The future.
6. The hardest part was leaving a job that I loved, but job duty wise the hardest part for me was double checking because I didn't want to make any mistakes.

So many negatives to this company unless you have no work or technical experience and desperate for a job. 

Low class, low pay, unprofessional, juvenile, old technology and no clue about cyber security. If I could give this company 0 stars I would. If you are a seasoned professional that is used to and expects to be able to give input due to your experience, knowledge and wisdom, this is not the place for you. If you are expecting structure, ethics and people to do actual work, don't work here. It is known through the company that anyone NOT in management is paid extremely low and technology is either not updated or obtained freely. Management has no clue and pretty much checked out.

Advice to Management is to get some ethics before investors figure you out. Be willing to pay the $ real seasoned professionals get paid vs hiring kids off the street with no experience and letting them run the show. Your company will never make it very far and definitely not "to the top" with the business model your company uses.

Good working environment with a highly energetic and positive team. Although small the team worked together to maintain a high degree of customer satisfaction.

A typical day in the engineering department involved providing day to day support for network operations in 30 convention centers in cities around the United States.

Our managers were sensitive to our needs and encouraged free thinking.

The company provided training and encouraged team members to seek out and learn new IT disciplines. This was a great way to expand ones skill set.

My co-workers played a valuable part of my growth in the department as I was required to learn many skills such as system administration, wireless networking, WAN protocols, these teammates were very helpful and encouraging.

The hardest part of the job or should I say the most challenging was working with extremely limited time constraints.

The reason I have given Smart City a two star review is simply because of pay and the lack of opportunity for full time work.  I hired on as a part time tech for the Dallas Convention Center with Smart City and I didn't expect the pay to be great but eventually after being employed for over a year and starting to be dependable as an essential part to the team I was denied for full-time employment. Overall though it was a great place to learn about networking, both the hardware and software side, the staff is really friendly and I would recommend it for any entry level network associate.

It's a fun place to work to begin to learn networks. You will have projects every week, mostly cable running, programming, and some PBX programming and phone installs. Since you work primarily at the convention you get to see a lot of cool events take place. Smart City has facilities at multiple locations across the US and could be asked to travel,  but not required to travel if you don't want to. The workplace culture was awesome and management was very understanding as well. The hardest part of the job was making installations with time constraints because events were taking place on a weekly basis. 

We are surrounded by genuine and caring people. The moto of “great employees only” not only acts as a core value, but truly encompasses our expectations of each other. As a team, we use each other to talk through situations, to stay sane after a rough day, and to push each other to go past our comfort zones. Sure, there are perks like cooking in the kitchen on your birthday month, carpooling and lunch programs, manufacturer trainings, but we also have book clubs, coaching, mentoring, and mindfulness training. It’s not about the perks it’s about the people. Because of the fast paced environment there can be some tougher days, but I do believe that comes along with any career path.

I had absolutely no problems with my fellow team members at Smart City Networks.  They are hard working and dedicated. 
However, the management at the workplace, the lack of advancement, recognition, and absolutely NO raises make working there almost unbearable.

The team members are great and despite the lack of appreciation by the management at the workplace, the team members ALWAYS are excellent in their performance, responsible with the jobs given, and work well beyond what they are being paid.

The company is extremely generous and friendly.

Smart City provides internet, phone, and cable TV services to many convention centers throughout the US. Most workers are in small teams of less than 10 inside an office within the convention center. Installing, maintaining, and providing support for internet services to the convention center, event management, exhibitors, and attendees is overall goal. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Event coordinator 2 salaries reported	$25.00 per hour
It technician 2 salaries reported	$19.00 per hour
Customer service/data entry 7 salaries reported	$17.14 per hour
Customer service/sales representative 1 salary reported	$20.00 per hour
Technician 1 salary reported	$20.00 per hour

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