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craigcd
07-02-2012, 10:39 PM
Looking for some advice and general info on the two companies. My wife has pending opportunities at both companies in their downtown offices. The salary, vacation, benefits, etc are very comparable so I was hoping for some additional insight into the organizations. We have family and friends at each company so she has a general idea.

What are some pro's and con's of each? Work environment? People? Opportunity to move around and advance?

Thanks

flipstah
07-03-2012, 07:25 AM
I've worked at Suncor and from what I've experienced/read around here, the environment varied from dept. to dept.

I was in Project Controls and it was very good experience if you want new work everyday. You just have to ask for it. ;)

vw_rabbit2.5
07-03-2012, 10:06 AM
if she is looking for a place to retire at, TCPL has one of the best pension plans out there (comparable to government jobs).

another nice thing about TCPL is the option to use your flex credits to purchase an extra week of vacation.

Xtrema
07-03-2012, 11:30 AM
Suncor is still recovering from culture conflict of absorbing PetroCan.

Like Flipstah said, experience depends on the teams you are on. Some are good and some are bad.

I have no experiences with TCPL but it seems to be more stable culture wise as it isn't involved in any huge acquisitions for quite awhile since the NOVA deal.

wardpr68
07-03-2012, 02:13 PM
Is this communications with Suncor?

craigcd
07-03-2012, 03:16 PM
Originally posted by wardpr68
Is this communications with Suncor?

Nope.

craigcd
07-03-2012, 03:18 PM
Thanks for the input so far. Her thoughts so far were that Suncor might be a younger company with more people her age that she can relate to.

Im guessing so much depends on the department/area.

Pacman
07-03-2012, 10:20 PM
My wife works at Suncor and enjoys it there. They seem to move people around who want to experience different areas. She moved from engineering to economics to finance without much trouble.

b_t
07-04-2012, 07:45 AM
I used to work at Suncor and hated it... one of the worst jobs I've ever had, and I worked at a sawmill, refinery and fast food jobs when I was younger. avoid their supply chain department like the plague.

HyperZell
07-04-2012, 09:18 AM
Originally posted by b_t
I used to work at Suncor and hated it... one of the worst jobs I've ever had, and I worked at a sawmill, refinery and fast food jobs when I was younger. avoid their supply chain department like the plague.

Details on why?

flipstah
07-04-2012, 03:43 PM
Originally posted by b_t
I used to work at Suncor and hated it... one of the worst jobs I've ever had, and I worked at a sawmill, refinery and fast food jobs when I was younger. avoid their supply chain department like the plague.

Whoa, that's a lot of haterade to give out today.

Xtrema
07-04-2012, 03:53 PM
Originally posted by HyperZell


Details on why?


supply chain department

I think that's a pretty bad department to work in regardless of which company.

XylathaneGTR
07-06-2012, 04:06 PM
I've worked for both companies...although my experience at Suncor was several years ago (pre-Petro) as a summer student. My father also works for Suncor currently, and my sister did a 16 month internship there.

I had good experiences with both companies...although I also think I was in a good department with a good group of people at Suncor. As others have said, this can vary a lot between business units (I was in project controls).

As far as your wife's comment on age...TCPL also seems to be a very young company. There are a lot of older people here, yes, and it is a top heavy organization...but they've hired a shitload of students this year and have really been focusing on getting some young blood in the organization and molding these people from the start. That being said, the on boarding process was a little less organized in the department I was in. Someone who is less able to work independently or recognize what they need to do might feel like they've been abandoned.

I feel that TCPL is a place that allows you to set yourself up to succeed. You can easily sit back and let work come to you, but if you have initiative, you can really make yourself shine. I wasn't left on my own, but no body spoon fed me there either, and expected me to take initiative and get shit done and ask questions if I needed to, etc.

The benefits aren't bad either, although you might find a slightly higher gross salary somewhere else...it all comes out in the wash.

I'd recommend giving TCPL a shot, but Suncor wouldn't be a bad choice either. They seem to be able to retain a lot of their employees, but it's been hit-or-miss from what I've heard.

Do you mind sharing what area the position is for?

whodiman
07-10-2012, 09:26 PM
Looks like a win-win situation. Half of my basketball team works at Suncor. They are all younger (not sure if that's just coincedence) but have high paying positions and all like it. I currently work at TCPL. You won't get as high as a bonus at TCPL but it'll be roughly the same every year good or bad. As mentioned we have a DB pension which is almost extinct now. Very good company culture. Probably can't go wrong either way.

black_2.5RS
07-10-2012, 09:31 PM
What area is your wife thinking of joining? I've worked in the IT function for both and I will tell you the difference between IT shops is night and day. If it's an IT role, I would go with TransCanada over Suncor.

craigcd
07-30-2012, 08:59 AM
Bit of a slow reply on this, however figured I should update. The decision came down to opportunity for future advancement as everything else was so closely matched and she ended up picking Suncor.

I will update in a couple weeks, the department seems to be good and the manager seems great.

finboy
07-30-2012, 07:11 PM
currently at suncor, it really depends on the area you work. I am in the "supply chain" department, but the whole department of supply chain is 1200+ people so it is really hard to say the whole department is crap.

ex.
-i have heard bad things about the supply chain services department from people who moved out of that area
-i have had nothing but luck in the category management department
-i have heard great things from various people in buyer/analyst roles in other areas of supply chain.

with a company of that size, you really won't get a straight answer for the whole company.

craigcd
07-30-2012, 08:25 PM
Her department would be field logistics