Absolutely everything I do in this place is transactional. Nobody builds even the working relationships. Everyone acts like they are holding onto state secrets. Nobody is straight. Lying is a national sport. Cheating is endemic. Exact opposite of... — read more 

Has anyone heard the latest rumours of Aramco moving the entire Dhahran HQ to Riyadh?

Some dictats from above came in today. I expect a hiring freeze and some layoffs will follow. Yet the company still pays an unsustainable and uncovered 7% dividend. Guess they’ll just load up on more debt. Venezuelan style bankruptcy is inevitable... — read more 

I don’t know if it is the sweet water but there is something special some of these management types drink because I have never met such arrogant people in my career. SVP of SMA including most of his department think they are gods gift to the earth... — read more 

Great forum, wish I’d found this earlier. There’s a revolving door with each new expat in my department, they become flavor of the month, get tasked to do all kinds of menial stuff, get treated like a new pet dog, until they either drink the... — read more 

All the posts I read everywhere is about overseas. I received a job offer at Americas Aramco, so I’m curious anyone has knowledge about working for Aramco in America? Thank you!

The on-boarding process for expats is highly disjointed. It starts with an interview or virtual meeting with several managers who use grand language but often make little sense. Following this, there is typically a long period of silence lasting... — read more 

Anyone managed to salvage their career post Aramco? I’ve stagnated in Dhahran for too long and need to get back to the real world. Has anyone been able to use their Aramco experience as a stepping stone to something better? I’m too young to... — read more 

I am perpetually baffled by Aramco's decision to consistently bring in skilled expats while leaving unqualified locals in management roles. Their so-called "succession planning" program is a joke, rotating mid-level managers with no expertise... — read more 

Well the time has come for another shake off expensive long term blood su-kers collecting pay expats - this Summer will be interesting - plus locals the bosses cannot stand say bye bye - We are warning you hehe

Where do I begin? I came to Aramco expecting the experience of a lifetime, brimming with opportunities to learn and grow. How naive that was. In my brief tenure at HQ, I've discovered that "stupid" has a new definition. Expats are lured with false... — read more 

Recently moved here and everything said here is true. I still had a very positive but it’s exactly as the people here describe it. It’s very lonely, can’t even make friends in the office because everyone is weird & only trying have their own agenda... — read more 

How are the temps this summer? Hearing that you all are in the midst of an abnormal heat wave.

So what’s the deal with the secondary share offering?

Even the FT is on the case now: https://on.ft.com/4byxAVT From what I see Aramco is in a consultancy death spiral, fuelled by bogus single source contracts and backhand deals. Somebody is making a LOT of money.

Those new Large Language Models (LLM) are truly a wonder to behold and perfect for Aramco imo. First, they can summarize large, complex documents into an easy-to-understand paragraph that incorporates diagrams from candy crash and skibidi toilet... — read more 

There’s a line of just over 70K gurning locals and sycophant expats waiting to claim this glittering prize from management. Who will win?

What’s the deal? Is this even possible these days given localization? I’be been told 5 years in same role then it might get considered!

...the current emotional temperature around camp with all the recent geopolitical tensions in the area?

Hasn't life at Aramco, work and personal, been fully illuminated by the many posts?

Im from US and currently working for another oil major. I just received an offer from Aramco, after reading all the posts here, I'm so confused and wonder should I even accept the offer? I realize many posts here are negative (pretty much the same... — read more 

Told conflicting messages by AOC people, some say fine, others say it’s forbidden for expats unless you have 3 kids. Since this is a dealbreaker for me appreciate any thoughts. Seems Aramco is a bit of a shady outfit, the $$$s work for me but we need... — read more 

Looks now we have the conditions for a further reduction in the expat force, any idea when can this happen?

Anyone? Company factor?

Seen a few posts on here and Aramco expats.com about offers being low and expats rejecting. In my area we had another expat rejection this week for that very reason. Staffing are coming in with silly offers of around half of current, it’s complete... — read more 

I am from an EU country and offered $5000 monthly base salary, plus 60% for a role in project management. It is for a 13 role. This is far away from my expectations. I have read in this site about negotiating, is getting $10000 an option?

I’ve been in KSA for around 6 months. Been sneezing and sometimes wheezing a bit, and recently been prescribed an inhaler. Doc says it is my body acclimatising to a new environment but despite being pressed he wouldn’t confirm it’s due to air... — read more 

Surprise, surprise, E is for Expat. Again. Different excuse made by management this time, apparently nobody got above an E in the team! I find that hard to believe! Guess it’s easier to be dishonest than admit the system is corrupt.

If you haven't been keeping up with the news, the Saudi Government has directed Riyad not to increase potential to 13 million barrels / day of oil. With oil prices around $70/bbl, you might reason that it does not make economic sense. However, I... — read more 

Nauseating rehearsals of simple presentations just for the sake of it. Absurd changes to fonts and colors demanded by childish management. No actual useful or constructive comments from anyone in the room. These people claim they are industry... — read more 

Involves high complexity and attention to detail. I have never seen a high level manager who valued that kind of work or even understood it. Thus, you are at higher risk when downsizing occurs. Mentions the words "work under pressure" or "tight... — read more 

There was a recent comment about a Dhahran residents battle with the Aramco Housing dept. We spend A LOT of time bashing management (deservingly so) but not much mentioned about the substandard housing expats are forced to endure. I remember my... — read more 

WTF is this about? I’m being told to move to some sh1tty apartment and pay for my kids schools if I don’t “comply”. Why is it even relevant? This was not made clear to me until I landed in the pit. What can I do?

Ever worked as a temporary employee to earn money during college? Well, I felt just like a temp at Aramco. That feeling you get when you aren't really part of the team and are just there to do work that nobody else wants to do. Some examples of... — read more 

If you look at Aramco's past annual reports, General and Administrative expense in millions of SAR were as follows: 2022 22,320 up 41% 2021 15,866 up 27% 2020 12,525 My question is where is the money going? Management is certainly not paying... — read more 

I have an offer for a role in IT that is actually less than my current base by over 1500USD a month. I’ve read a few others on here have faced the same predicament.Is there any point in negotiating further?

What’s the work life there?

https://healthpolicy-watch.news/new-scorecard-finds-big-polluters-are-doing-little-to-address-air-pollution-with-saudi-arabia-ranked-worst/ 0 from 15!

What is the latest guess on employee expats by country?