Great technical experience ruined by poor management and a toxic culture.The good thingsWorking as a technician at Johnson Controls provided me with strong hands on experience in building management systems and exposure to a wide range of sites and clients. The technical side of the job is genuinely interesting, there’s no shortage of opportunities to learn new systems, work with advanced technology, and build problem solving skills. Many of the people on the ground other technicians, project engineers, and some clients are great to work with and genuinely supportive.
The challengesThe real problem lies in the management culture. There’s a strong sense of disconnection between management and the people actually doing the work. Many decisions seem to be made by people who haven’t set foot on a site in years, yet they dictate how things should be done without understanding the realities or constraints technicians face.
Instead of collaboration and support, there’s often a culture of blame and micromanagement. Some managers are more focused on politics, covering themselves, or chasing numbers than supporting their teams. Raising issues or suggesting improvements can easily get you labelled as “negative” rather than being taken seriously. This kind of toxic environment wears people down and drives away good technicians.