r/BurnsMcDonnell

When I first started engaging BMI a few years ago, my experience actually wasn’t too negative. Generally if I provided clear printed instructions, they could rinse and repeat deliverables without too much oversight and issue.

Lately they’ve been such a pain in the ass to use. Constant QC issues, don’t follow instructions, and constantly going way over budget and asking for unreasonable WAF extensions. It’s the point I’m trying to avoid BMI like the plague, but sometimes the only way a project can cross the finish line profitably is by using them.

Anyone else noticing this? T&D

I recently received an offer from Burns & McDonnell. I currently work at Bechtel, where I have a hybrid schedule and work from home two days a week.

I have a few questions for those working in the Houston office:

1. For those who commute, especially from the Cypress area, does the daily commute eventually lead to burnout? If not, what has helped you manage it?

2. My offer states that I can work from home up to 30 days per year at my discretion. In practice, is it generally acceptable to use those days whenever needed, or is there an expectation that they should be used sparingly?

3. Does overall cash compensation (salary, bonuses, promotions, etc.) tend to increase based on individual performance and contributions? I consider myself hardworking and driven, but I’ve experienced situations in the past where promotions were delayed despite strong performance.

I would really appreciate any insight or experiences you’re willing to share. Thank you!

I spent 18 years working in IT for a major engineering and consulting firm that constantly brags about being one of Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For. For nearly two decades, I gave them my time, my expertise, and my dedication. I climbed the ranks to become a Staff IT Regional Specialist, solving complex problems and keeping operations running smoothly.

But earlier this year, I was pushed out. Why? Because after 18 years of loyalty, you aren't a human being to upper management. You are just an asset on a spreadsheet, and if they want to move you, they will make your life miserable until they find an excuse to lock you out.

The nightmare started late last year when my section manager blindsided the team with a high-importance email announcing an Organizational Alignment. In typical corporate speak, the email claimed they were strengthening our operational structure by having another team absorb parts of our function. On less than a month's notice, they completely dismantled the very role I had spent years helping to build and shuffled me into a different operational technician group.

But the restructuring was only phase one. Once I was forced into this new alignment, the real driving force began, which was sudden, hyper-focused scrutiny from my section manager.

Almost overnight, a manager who previously trusted my autonomy began micromanaging my every move. I was subjected to intense, rigid tracking regarding my office presence and schedule adherence. If I needed a minor adjustment to my arrival time or had an unexpected delay, it was treated like a major performance issue. My one-on-one meetings became incredibly hostile environments.

I tried to reach out up the chain of command to my manager's boss to address this sudden, targeted scrutiny, but I was completely gaslit. He acted like the sudden shift in treatment was completely normal.

It all built up to my final day. I was pulled into a meeting with my section manager and hit with a massive, four-page write-up. It was a laundry list of pettiness, dragging up minor issues we had already discussed and settled weeks prior, clearly designed just to maximize the paperwork against me.

When the meeting finally ended, it was lunchtime. I was so completely overwhelmed, stressed, and exhausted by the relentless targeting that as I walked out for lunch, I handed my badge to a coworker and said, "In case I don't come back." In that exact moment, my head was spinning, and I genuinely wasn't sure if I could bring myself to walk back into that toxic environment.

While I was out grabbing lunch and trying to clear my head, my manager's boss messaged me on Teams. He said he’d been informed I left my badge behind and asked if that was a message or if it could just be there when I got back. I responded openly, telling him exactly how frustrated I was, and reminding him of the conversation we’d just had a couple of days prior where I laid out how I was being treated. I explicitly told him I was just at lunch and that I would get my badge when I came back into the office.

He never replied.

I finished my lunch and returned to the office well within a normal lunch break time frame. The second I walked through the door, I got a message from HR telling me to meet them in a conference room.

The HR representative asked me flat out if I had left my badge behind when I left the building. I wasn't going to lie, so I said yes. Without letting me explain, without a single shred of nuance, and completely ignoring my Teams exchange with upper management confirming I was coming back, she said, "Well, then we are going to accept that as your resignation."

Just like that, after 18 years of service, I was walked out of the building. No exit interview, no opportunity to explain, no respect. They weaponized a single moment of absolute overwhelm to trap me into a resignation so they wouldn't have to lay me off or fire me outright.

It’s a bitter pill to swallow when you realize that an 18-year tenure can be completely erased by a corporate restructuring, a manager determined to build a fake paper trail, and an HR department waiting to pounce on a technicality. If you're reading this and putting in late hours thinking your loyalty will save you when management decides to shift gears, take it from me: it won't. Look out for yourself, because the company will always look out for its managers and its bottom line first.

Hi everyone,

I have an onsite interview next week at Burns & McDonnell in Kansas City for a Staff Electrical Engineer position.

The process started around mid-May, and I've completed two interview rounds before being invited onsite.

For anyone who's interviewed there:

• What should I expect during the onsite?
• Is it more technical or behavioral?
• Any tips on what they're looking for or how to prepare?

I'd really appreciate any advice or experiences you can share. Thanks!

Hello, I have an offer for staff structural engineer role.

My background: i am currently in bridges (since past 4+ years) but have worked 2+ years in substations structures for another firm before that.

I wished to understand, do substations and t-line design structural engineers work together? Or they are 2 separate groups. Ideally, I want to do substations and transmission structures both. And then choose one if i am asked to pick one. But I haven’t used PLS before. I am reading learning PLS takes time.

Is it OK to ask for initial training or some mentorship in PLS? I will have to start somewhere.

Can anyone suggest how to proceed here?