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    TransAlta Reviews

    Updated 24 March, 2018
    111 reviews

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    2.0
    StarStarStarStarStar
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    Approve of CEO
    TransAlta President & CEO Dawn Farrell
    Dawn Farrell
    56 Ratings

    111 Employee Reviews

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    Pros
    Cons

    • Upper management not well-liked as you can see from other reviews (in 10 reviews)

    • Zero work life balance, you get days off when it suits the company (in 3 reviews)

    More Pros and Cons

    1. Helpful (7)

      "Viewing it from the other side of the glass"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Senior Advisor - Stakeholder & Indigenous Relations in Calgary, AB
      Current Employee - Senior Advisor - Stakeholder & Indigenous Relations in Calgary, AB
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time (More than 3 years)

      Pros

      Most people who write reviews on sites like Glassdoor are those disgruntled because of layoffs or personal issues with their supervisors. The truth is those of us who are happy about our place of work never take the time to share the other side of the story.
      I have been with TransAlta for 4 years now. In the past 25 years, my career has taken me to all four corners of the globe working on sustainable development projects. I have had the privilege to be mentored by some of the greatest professionals around. Yet, I don't remember ever working for a more innovative, progressive company than TransAlta Corporation.
      Not one or two, but three of the supervisors I've worked with in this company have taken the time to make sure I'm involved in projects I find meaningful. The level of trust is one of the highest I have ever encountered and ideas and suggestions are listened to and followed on.
      Most of the people I work with work hard because they feel respected and appreciated.
      Lately, the Management Team in the Company has involved us all in a culture-changing exercise; and the results have been outstanding. A positive attitude is contagious and ours is spreading rapidly.
      I truly look forward to the rest of my career here, and I know of many others who feel the same way about TransAlta.

      Cons

      No company is perfect but this one comes really close

      Advice to Management

      Keep involving the key innovators in the process of bringing this company to new heights. Some of the best ideas come from front-line employees.

    2. Helpful (2)

      "Corporate"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Former Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Doesn't Recommend
      Neutral Outlook

      I worked at TransAlta full-time

      Pros

      Good benefits, lots of job opportunities

      Cons

      Bad culture, demoralized workfoce and old fashioned

      3. Join the TransAlta team
      See Our Latest Jobs

    3. "Burning coal"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Doesn't Recommend
      Negative Outlook
      Disapproves of CEO

      Pros

      Wages are ok and 5 crew rotation makes for long stretches of days off

      Cons

      Company run buy Aussie influence and bad business practices.

      Advice to Management

      Hope you enjoy your fat bonuses brought to you by hard working union personal!!!

    4. "A good place to work"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time

      Pros

      Strong female leadership and mentorship
      Promotion and support of good work/life balance
      Interesting work, interesting industry
      Some good and solid benefits
      Opportunities for advancement and learning

      Cons

      External factors challenge the electricity business, but this company is setting itself up to whether these

    5. Helpful (3)

      "Decent place to work, but poor morale makes the environment difficult."

      StarStarStarStarStar
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee
      Doesn't Recommend
      Negative Outlook
      No opinion of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time

      Pros

      Good colleagues, vacation policy and benefits.

      Cons

      Workplace morale has decreased considerably the past couple of years. Salary increases have been very minimal after joining.

    6. Helpful (1)

      "going through a lot of changes"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - N/A in Calgary, AB
      Current Employee - N/A in Calgary, AB
      Doesn't Recommend
      Neutral Outlook
      No opinion of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time (Less than a year)

      Pros

      The work itself is really interesting, especially from an IT point of view.

      Cons

      Employees are disposable, as much as contractors. They pay a little less than market, because of the interesting work and awesome experience these projects offer. Just realize there is no job security in ANY role or position.

      Advice to Management

      none - they are in survival mode

    7. Helpful (4)

      "Literally the worst"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Commercial in Calgary, AB
      Current Employee - Commercial in Calgary, AB
      Doesn't Recommend
      Neutral Outlook
      Disapproves of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time (More than a year)

      Pros

      - Because of high turnover rate, there are opportunities for advancement
      - Any time not spent at work
      - Coworkers are nice
      - Cafeteria has good breakfast

      Cons

      - No work-life balance. Expect a 50+ hour work week as normal
      - CEO (Dawn Farrell) is a sociopath; took a >$3M pay increase, while freezing employee wages (for the last three years).
      - As per company-wide Survey (designed by McKinsey & Co.), employees are universally unhappy at TransAlta - the results were abysmal. Management has done nothing to address this.
      - Benefits; no longer competitive relative to industry. More vacation time and flex days at Capital Power, Enmax, and TransCanada. No health spending account. Dental coverage is Blue Cross
      - Pay increases are minimal, or non-existent
      - Poor training; not a good place to learn if you're new to the industry, due to time constraints of senior staff members

      Advice to Management

      See 'Cons'

    8. "Everyone is encouraged to innovate"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Manager in Calgary, AB
      Current Employee - Manager in Calgary, AB
      Recommends
      Positive Outlook
      Approves of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time (More than 5 years)

      Pros

      It is an exciting time to be part of the TransAlta team. The company is transforming due to the Coal to Gas transition and focus on growing Gas and Renewables.

      All employees are encouraged to bring ideas forward to improve the companies performance and culture - I have implemented many, the system in place to do this is world-class. Once an improvement is made, employees are rewarded - it's timely and specific recognition - we know how our work makes a difference.

      Our team is engaged and energized which leads to a great working environment. Senior leadership trust that we know the internal and external trends that impact our function which allows our team to implement great ideas with very little red tape.

      Anyone who wants to help a company transform and be part of history would fit well at TransAlta.

      Cons

      Consequence management can be improved to ensure business processes are being used consistently across the company.

      Advice to Management

      Stay focused, we are on the right track. Keep working hard to build trust and listen to employees.

    9. Helpful (3)

      "Far more Bad than Good"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee in Calgary, AB
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee in Calgary, AB
      Doesn't Recommend
      Neutral Outlook
      Disapproves of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time (More than 8 years)

      Pros

      It is only my opinion, but this is what I've taken away from my years so far.
      - Terrific colleagues and teammates for the most part.
      - Good team/department leaders for the most part.
      - Challenging work with heavy workload that keeps you busy.
      - Learning opportunity for those interested in power industry.
      - Lots of position openings due to increased employee turnover.
      - Good advancement opportunities for females

      Cons

      It is only my opinion, but this is what I've taken away from my years so far.
      - Downward corporate culture since 2012 and morale since 2015 restructuring. Current iteration of fixing company has good intent but remains a distraction. Uncertainty and instability with ongoing transformation/innovation initiative.
      - CEO does not hesitate to publicly ridicule and shame employees. No class and not authentic leadership. Has cascaded down to other senior leaders.
      - Lost 4 of our better corporate officers to an AB peer, BC peer, a 2014 retirement and a 2016 retirement.
      - Price fixing in Alberta and California markets resulted in a maligned reputation and $50 million in fines not available to workforce.
      - Cut in all employee benefits after 2015 wage freezes and layoffs.
      - Increased turnover rates.
      - Inappropriate behavior from some past and current executives towards staff.

      Advice to Management

      Irrelevant as despite their pledge to improve the culture the corporate officers just don't get the root of the problems.

    10. Helpful (3)

      "Seeing it from the Production Side of the Glass"

      StarStarStarStarStar
      • Work/Life Balance
      • Culture & Values
      • Career Opportunities
      • Comp & Benefits
      • Senior Management
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee in Wabamun, AB
      Current Employee - Anonymous Employee in Wabamun, AB
      Doesn't Recommend
      Neutral Outlook
      Disapproves of CEO

      I have been working at TransAlta full-time

      Pros

      Plenty of time off as long as you "forget" to charge your phone.

      Cons

      I've been with this company for 4.5 years now, and the second I get a job opportunity elsewhere, I will be seizing it. As long as you don't work for a part of the company responsible for actually making money (production), I think you'll absolutely love it (as many of the reviews here seem to suggest - ie. Stakeholder Affairs - whatever that means). Those in the plants, making sure that we actually do what we're supposed to, ie. generate electricity, get trampled and beat into the ground by new and innovative ideas while having what the company calls "leaders" crack the whip from behind. Management's idea of motivation is asking for self-imposed deadlines and then losing their minds when these deadlines aren't met due to conflicting priorities which crop up incessantly. All of these frustrations are compounded by a revolving door of front-line HR personnel, who report into an increasingly disconnected management structure who would appear to have no understanding of what it takes to operate older coal generating assets.
      I could get behind an organization that struggles with leadership, as it's not an inherent trait in most people. It takes practice, patience, and persistence to get right. But the absolute worst part is the communications that get pushed out, which are completely oblivious to the realities to the front line, and are quite frankly, insulting that while the operative phrase is "cost efficiency", the company spends money on communicating disjointed and contradictory messages to its employees.

      Advice to Management

      Understand the first and second order effects of the incentives that you give. When you're telling your front-line employees that you value their contributions and feedback, but then turn around and hold middle management to the fire as opposed to supporting them with much needed resources, who do you really expects feels the full effect?

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