program manager

contract specialist

supply chain specialist

researcher

office representative

US Department of Energy

Working in a law enforcement type of job and protecting our nations secrets, is a very fast pace environment type of career. In law enforcement, things like emergencies can happen quickly. At other times, we may be providing security for highly classified projects. During our time at these experiments and tests, we actually get to watch and learn what it takes to keep our nation safe. I loved those types of jobs, learning and watching the scientists and engineers work on the classified projects, and what those projects are designed to do. Keeping those highly important people and projects safe and secure is a reward on it's own. While doing the scheduling for the Dept. of Energy, we came in an hour early to set up the jobs for the shift we ran. Security and law enforcement duties change hourly, depending of what type of jobs are happening at the moment. Things change very rapidly, and constantly. It made our job very fast paced, and very challenging. I worked a lot with the public. Our facility has areas that are open to public transportation, and requires us to check every person and vehicle that comes through our post. I very often, had to interact and help out persons, either government or private persons. We had a good management team, with whom I worked very closely with, due to my being in labor management as the vice president of the union. Law enforcement of any type, really teaches you how to work with people in all situations. It is a fun, sometimes very fast paced environment. At other times, it can be very stressful, and even a bit heart pounding. Just watch any of the cop shows on television, and you get an idea of the environment. But we also provided top level security to help keep our nation and it's national security secrets safe. After 32 years in the career field, I have no regrets at all. It was time for a change after my mother passed away, and my father had a heart attack. My wife's family has health issues also. We decided that our families need our help, and whatever we could do, we would do. So I retired.

USDOE is a great place to work on some of the most important energy issues in the U.S. (and internationally) today.  The exposure to energy technology and analysis is incredible, the in-house expertise is also pretty incredible, and it's clear that DOE officers have a unique outlook when compared with other energy entities (e.g., private sector, not for profit, etc).

The best parts of the job is the opportunity to serve in the Federal government, the opportunity to represent the U.S.,, and the opportunity to tap into the depth of energy expertise offered at this level (which is considerable).  Employees are literally interacting with some of the premiere energy officers in the country, and becoming very fine energy professionals in their own right.  This was very rewarding - after meeting some civil servants, it's easy to see that most have their hearts in the right place and have contributed to some incredible initiatives (for the better).

The hardest part of the job is that it's an enormous entity and it's quite a different entity when compared with other kinds of energy organizations. The hallways are some of the longest you will ever see (!)  Based on how the organization is structured there can be disincentives to collaboration.  And, when the organization changes (e.g., new leadership), the work also changes (overnight).  That can be difficult if you are brought on for specific duties, which then are no longer part of your daily work, or which can evaporate at any time.

I found managers to be overall "strong", given they had significant experience and, more often than not, were open to staff ideas, and, more often than not, flexible and supportive of projects and deadlines.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Benefits, though depending on what part of DOE,  NNSA, or the National Labs and where you work, it could be the people as well.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Depending on where and with what specific office you work, people and relationships might be the most stressful part. But this is literally every organization. If you are working at HQ (DC), you may also have the unpleasant task of maneuvering the “get ahead at all cost” minefield of people trying to get promoted.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It depends, as already noted, heavily on where geographically you are and within what office or subunit. Many offices have political appointees in power that largely dictate subcultures and ethos. It can be hit or miss. On the whole, you have passionate people pursuing very valuable missions, and you can hide under that umbrella.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Completely depends. But factor in office chitchat, too many meetings at HQ, office and birthday parties, federal holidays, and the other random requirements, days are rarely hard.

DOE provided a very successful career and goals during my 33 years of work there.  A typical day at work involved providing information to internal and external customers.

Ability to manage and lead teams, providing them the resources and guidelines that each organization needed to meet their given deadlines for reporting on Congressionally mandated reports, Federal register notices as well as, conference management.

The workplace was a diverse culture of people from various backgrounds coming together to reach a common goal.  Working as a team to strengthen each other during the process of the organization.

The hardest part of the job was being able to stay busy during some of the slow periods of business.  But overall it gave me the opportunity to organize and be prepared for the busy days ahead.

The most enjoyable period was being able to satisfy internal and external customers and to meet my deadlines with all my projects and responsibilities.  In other words, staying on task.

The organization has strayed too far from its original mission of making the United Stated energy independent.  The maze of lab and contractor-managed (controlled) sites makes it nearly impossible to implement agency-wide change.  It is more akin to each site being its own organization with only a conceptual tether to HQ.  They are nearly, some more than others, autonomous.  If someone can come in and focus only on their little task, they'll be fine.  If they depend on anyone outside their work group, they'll be miserable.

The work life balance is good, possibly too much so.  It is not uncommon for anything to be more important than actual work.  CFC, Award Ceremonies and the like must be attended, but little thought is given to actual work.  The procurement processes are Rube Goldberg machines, so if you work in an operation which requires consumables, you will likely end up with equipment you cannot use for long periods.

A typical day at work would consist of researching various books, needed by Employees throughout the Dept. of Energy and pulling them to be delivered through inner office routing. Thermal binding of books or sending them out to a binding company for repairs. Filing all returned literature, books and packets to the appropriate shelves. Cleaning of materials and keeping the automative system updated.

Very little interaction with fellow co-workers in the department, there was only 3 of us and each of us had sections to maintain. 

The hardest part of the job was not really being able to speak with fellow staff/ people and being isolated in such a dark and moldy enviroment.

The most enjoyable part of the job was when I was working in Legistics. I found I am good with numbers, research and data bases.

Working at the Department helped me to understand how science, U.S. Laboratories, and nuclear plants functions were promulgated.  Negotiations with foreign countries and finding ways to improve the overall conditions throughout the world is extremely necessary.  Knowing that we can be fair in awarding contracts to the low bidder who can get the job done in a manner that proves that our resources do not have to be wasted on over spending as long as the job gets done safely and properly.  Having a top secret clearance showed me how important it is in keeping secret and  confidential information secured for the safety of the United States and world unity

Typical day: priortize work to be completed, get bosses input for most urgent. update division calander. Gather input for reports. Type up correspondence, attach supporting documentation if needed, and send it up to next level for review. File. Make travel arrangements when needed by division personnel. Type up procurement requests. Gather and submit time and attendence. Order publications. Take notes at division meetings and type up for directors review. Answered/screened calls. Prepared Power Point slides. Maintained division files. Helped where needed.

I learned you can do a lot with a group committed to excellence.

Management at all levels wanted to get the job done right.

Co-workers: where great to be around and were true professionals.

Hardest part: was when I had to leave to take care of my family.

Most enjoyable part: Was working with a great group of people.

As a middle aged woman, and the Secretary for DOE in the Environmental Division, it was a great job, lots of responsibilities, good job performance reviews and cash bonuses, the only issue I have is that a Secretary is always labeled as such, and even thought I got my bachelor's degrees, I don't think they would have advanced me to a greater position.  I was the EEO representative for my division, and there were feelings that the white male engineers were getting the shaft.  I myself, being a white female, applied for 6 different jobs and in each situation, a black woman was chosen for the positions.  There was definite prejudice at DOE, Black women and men were promoted and not the whites.  It is reverse discrimination.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Autonomy and remote work, both before and after COVID. Freedom to learn NEPA Project assessments. The aforementioned were the only positives.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Poor management, specifically the training protocol. While the autonomy was appreciated, it became far too redundant for technical work that needed to be taught. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Stressful and confusing. Not a lot of leadership and devisive managers that didn't know how to teach the skills necessary to complete tasks.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Sporadic and misleading, with a habit of over assigning tasks for new employees.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Program manager 3 salaries reported	$149,878 per year
Contract specialist 3 salaries reported	$89,333 per year
Supply chain specialist 1 salary reported	$99,107 per year
Researcher 1 salary reported	$750 per week
Office representative 1 salary reported	$83,500 per year

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