Just getting out of school, and I’ve been called in for an interview. Don’t know much about the company, but I’m a little skeptical with apparent recent layoffs and so many job postings. The reviews on Glassdoor, and other websites are not great. Never know whether to trust those things, but wondering if y’all could just provide some honest feedback for me about starting my career at Southwestern. Sounds like they really want me, almost desperate. Should I negotiate my salary? How quickly will I get promoted? How’s the work/life balance? (I still volunteer with my college sorority). Is the management approachable and down to earth? I’m also talking with another company in downtown Houston, so trying to weigh my options. SWN has such a beautiful building. Would I get my own office? Just so many things to consider. Thanks.
35 replies (most recent on top)
Look everyone! The mole is out of the country on some much deserved vacation with his other significant mole. The guy had too much pressure! I’m sure he’s just doing what moles do! He’ll be back in due time. Rest assured. There is BIG NEWS coming. Stay patient. Don’t think about it over the weekend. Continue competing and winning and making Team SWN what it is today! Look how far we’ve come in just 4 short years. The mole will report when he’s GD ready to report!
Hey Hubba Bubba. Did you hear the big news? No you did not. The “mole” was not able to confirm it yet so we all wait.
Our CEO has repositioned us to compete and win. What’s not to like about that!!!
Earnings report today after market close. Earnings are better than expected is word out in the street. What's the big announcement? C'mon! Tell us!!
Isn’t “smart hire” two words? Anyway, you must be a disciple of Way. Big announcement Friday. Gathering final details from the mole. Friday call. Everyone tune in. Friday, Friday Friday!
Met our new hire today. One word. Smart hire. This girl is talented, motivated, and just going to rise amongst the ranks. Going to be a great start to a very long lasting, fulfilling and rewarding career fornher at Team SWN!!
Well howdy everyone from Team SWN! Just completed my second day on this fabulous new job, where it’s hard to not see the innovation and safety mindset ooozing from the walls. Admittedly, I’m a little jazzed up also because I had three pumpkin spice lattes. Our Market is awesome. And the lunch selections are numerous and I can’t imagine them ever getting old! Why would anyone ever leave the campus for lunch? Anyway, loving it so far, and my office plants are doing great along the window. They’ve settled in nicely! See some of y’all at the Market, water wall or maybe a game of ping pong! We had one of those tables at the sorority house too!
Wow! What a first day! Thanks for the note. I’ll take you up on that Market coffee! Pumpkin spice! Spent most of the day getting my plants and such situated in my new window office. I’m also so inspired by the “women in leadership” club we have here. Can’t wait to join and it’s also something we really preached at my sorority, so I will fit right in! I stayed late on my first day just to make a good impression, although my boss left early I think. Team SWN and the winning attitude is for realz folks. Soooo excited to be here! Ciao!
Welcome to Team SWN. We are WINNING thanks to our leadership. Think I seen you around the office. I will introduce myself. Let’s do coffee at the Market!!
Congrats on the jobs and welcome to Team SWN, where we will compete and win! #winning!!
Us Millineals meet at the market and I will buy you a Pumpkin Spice Latte or another fine beverage of your choosing.
Best career move you will make to join us!!!
Sooo excited. Start date is next Monday. What should I wear? I still have plenty of cute outfits from my sorority days! I will be getting an office. Should be plenty of room for my diploma and plants, etc. Does the market have pumpkin spice latte all year round? I sure hope so. Hoping there is “bring your dog to work” day as well! They talked about SWN stock (at one time) doing better than Google stock in my interview. I imagine this place is a lot like working at Google. Yay! See y’all soon!
Well, the interview went ok, I think. I left with plenty of time, and somehow the battery on my Prius didn’t work, so I got stuck halfway between my parents house and the SWN campus. Luckily I was able to WhatsApp my Dad and he picked me up and brought me to the building. I truly believe the sorority interview prep class really prpepared me. There were a couple of questions I wasn’t prepared for, and things I preferred. Not sure what that meant. I did ask abou the office - well that was my first question. He said that wouldn’t be a problem. “The office space here is sort of like our whole problem with natural gas. We have a lot of supply and not enough demand. What office would you like?” That left me with a good impression. I think I landed the job! Soooooo excited, yet nervous. See y’all soon
How did the interview go? Bet you land the job, get an office and a nice sign on bonus!
Welcome to Team SWN!
Ok. Today’s the day. I have my Prius fully charged ready for the journey and I’m ready for the interview this afternoon. That interview prep course should be beneficial. Any last minute tips are appreciated. Soooo nervous. 😳
See, I’m so nervous I said answer instead of ask. What questions do they typically ask? My sorority had an interview prep workshop which I attended, so I should be in good shape. Thanks all!
Ok, so Thursday it is. Getting nervous. Anyone know what questions they typically answer? What should I wear? Glad to hear from previous poster that you have pumpkin spice latte. Sooooo excited, yet nervous.
Hey guys. I wanted to offer some encouragement to the prospective co worker. I sort of head up a group (we call ourselves the Millenial buddies). We meet in the Market every morning and have pumpkin spice latte - actually everything pumpkin spice. We discuss various topics, like living with our parents, environmental activism, melting polar ice caps, general worry about the world and the other causes we care about. We would welcome a new member to add to the discussion. We meet at 7am. Pretty soon we’ll have membership cards, but seeing if SWN will subsidize the cost for this. Good luck with your interview.
Bill - shouldn’t you be running our company and not commenting on these boards?
Good luck on your interview this week. Don’t let the naysayers detract from a great company with top notch leadership. Look at the team our CEO has built! I see myself as a life time company employee. Yes, we hit a rough spot a few years ago (as did everyone else) yet our leadership has got us ready to compete and win!! Just like the Astros!!!
Thanks again, everyone. I made a “pros and cons” list. I came up with more pros than cons. Coming in Thursday for the interview. Wish me luck. I know a lot of people suggested I steer away. But according to the guy on the phone, he said I could get an office and I’d be learning a lot. The sky’s the limit!
https://swn.taleo.net/careersection/swn_external/jobsearch.ftl?lang=en&portal=8100120198
17 job postings from a dying company that just had significant layoffs and more will be gone when Fayetteville sale complete. That should tell you something about morale and what the people on the inside think.
Yep, the consultants are coming back as soon as the they return from their offshore fishing trip with Silly Billy and the gang. Dilly dilly!
Seen that other post. Really, consultants are coming back? I would tell this possible new hire to look elsewhere. Anyone else agreed disagree? Or should she see how things really are at SWN. Get hired then laid off/fired? How can we help her?
Besides me is there anyone else who will help me persuade this college grad to sign on with SWN? Great company. Bright future. Good pay and benefits. Complete and real deal. Let’s go fellow SWN employees...
Dang. I think y’all done run off that college grad girl - the original poster. Wow.
It’s not a joke. Being in one tower will make us a cohesive team who will become one of the strongest most admired E&P company in the US. Our leadership got rid of deadweight from the layoffs and sale of FS. They kept the best and brightest surrounding them (albeit in one tower). The leaders who have left in the last year, well glad they are gone as the leadership team we have now can be summed up in one word. Wow! Look at what these visionaries have accomplished in their careers! Onward SWN and let’s become the envy of others! So please join our “winning” team!
Who wants to join me down at the Market for some more purple koolaid?
You've got to be joking @VsyjUtM-1nqi. Executive management hired a consulting firm who took how long and for how much money to determine that low ranking employees needed to be cut? And management, despite the many layers of redundant roles, made it through the layoffs almost entirely unscathed? The layoffs were necessary, don't get me wrong, but were poorly executed and failed to target many unnecessary positions. The company isn't any "better" than it was prior to the layoff and there isn't much hope among current employees that things will get better. Many are hanging around doing the bare minimum, hoping they're next to be cut.
The stock price reflects the Way regime's failure as a leaders. End of story.
Look folks. Say what you want. The layoffs and management decisions were for one thing only. To make the company better and to remove the dead weight. We have a “forced ranking” around here and anyone who doesn’t meet my (our) “expectations” - well, we’ll just find someone who might. End of story.
I wouldn't recommend SWN to my worst enemy.
Look at other companies. There were so many people recently hired, worked for the company less than a year and got laid off. There is absolutely no sense in laying off hundreds then turning around and hiring.
Negotiate salary? Last time I heard of someone fresh out of college trying to do that, they asked the prospective employee to move on. And that was AFTER being graded a high performer as a SWN intern.
Work life balance is heavily tilted towards life, because there really isn't much work to do at SWN. Don't get me wrong, there ARE people who ARE doing real work, but not many. Those who are will be apprehensive about sharing ideas and workload, as they value their own job security.
Rumor has it that promotions were once an "easy ride" for young women in the accounting field at SWN. Other disciplines, not so easy. See my next paragraph for what it takes to get a management position at SWN.
Management is hit or miss. And the misses are large and abundant. While friendly for the most part, SWN seems to promote people who are good at s---ing all of the air out of a room. Chances are, you will be working for someone who likes to call meetings and loves to hear themselves talk, but provides very little technical insight. They will repeat any intelligent thoughts you express as if they were the originators of the ideas. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree and the tree is the CEO. He has transformed what was once a solid corporate culture into a career purgatory for the majority of employees.
The building isn't that great. Just wait until everybody is stuffed into one tower- you'll have trouble finding a toilet that isn't occupied, or isn't being cleaned.
If you're okay with the above and don't have other options, I'd give SWN a shot. You'll probably learn a few things, but your career and professional merit will develop more slowly than if you were to find a more healthy company.
The work/life balance is great if you love to work your life away. If having an office is a top priority and sounds like it is you should go elsewhere. They may sound desperate due to others already realizing what type of company SWN is; thus a low pool of applicants. Promotions? No one can tell you how quickly you can be promoted before you even begin a job. Truth is between lay-offs and people quitting, that’s all you need to know about a career with SWN.
Please take all you hear with a grain of salt. The safety thing must be the hype about how “safe” it is to work in the office. We are reminded like little kids to hold the handrail and see wonderful posters about pet safety. Which brings me back to my point. Let’s see what others have to say. So how about it fellow SWNers. What should this gal do?
Thank you both so much. Bless your hearts. As it turns out, I had a sorority sister who previously worked there. Not sure what happened, but something happened and she is no longer there. Was hoping that I’d get an office that would over look that awesome waterwall - you know the one on the LinkedIn page? Maybe it’s not so promising after all. Maybe I’ll just come in for the interview and see how it goes. It’s not IT related, it’s more in the safety realm I think, but a new sort of position I think. But don’t know anything about that group or the management. But seems like a lot of community interaction and that is awesome.
Ask yourself- if SWN wants you, an unknown entry level, and they are desperate to bring you on, then why did they layoff 200 in June? Why have another 200(?) left on their own since then? And if you are looking for a career, are you OK with the fact SWN seldom promotes from within? And if you are IT, that is the worst department to receive acknowledgement, raises, or respect.
No office unless you are a manager. Whether your manager is approachable depends on the team. In IT, the answer would be no. They will just lie and tell you what you want to hear, especially if you are a female. If you drink the kool-aid, always agree with your boss, never talk back or complain, you’ll likely get promoted if you don’t get laid off. Company is not doing well, nor will it until executive team and management is replaced, which isn’t likely.