At Illinois Tool Works, you can find fulfilling work manufacturing a range of specialty products, equipment, fasteners, and more.
With an extensive track record of quality manufacturing, ITW has been around for over a century.
This long-standing company could be a great place to start a new career or get a first job.
No matter what your career goals are, our list of pros and cons below can help you evaluate how good of a fit you might be for ITW–and how good of a fit it might be for your needs.
Table of Contents
- Pros of Working for Illinois Tool Works
- Cons of Working for Illinois Tool Works
- 1. Some jobs require heavy travel in the company
- 2. Some supervisors micromanage
- 3. Lack of communication between unrelated departments
- 4. The company is not the most progressive or innovative.
- 5. Disconnect between office and floor in some settings
- 6. Technical leaders may not have much room for advancement.
- 7. Limited opportunities for growth in small company size
- 8. No opportunities for working from home
- 9. Old-fashioned work culture
- 17 Pros and Cons of Working for Illinois Tool Works – Summary Table
Pros of Working for Illinois Tool Works
1. Illinois Tool Works is a Fortune 200 company.
With a strong reputation in their field, Illinois Tool Works is a company for which you can feel proud to work.
After all, they have made the cut as a Fortune 200 company.
This means that they rank in the upper 200 entries of the Fortune 500 list.
That is pretty impressive for a company of their size!
2. Full-time employment opportunities
If you want to work full-time hours, there are plenty of opportunities to find full-time work at ITW.
Some of their positions may be harder to work full-time than others.
However, if you are looking for full-time factory work or exploring other roles, you should not have a hard time finding the number of hours you need to support yourself.
3. Flexible work environment
Many employees find that the flexible work environment at ITW is a huge bonus.
Depending on your worksite, you might find that Illinois Tool Works leaves you to get your work done without too much micromanaging.
Taking breaks to go to the bathroom is not a huge issue with this company.
Additionally, you will probably find that as long as you are fulfilling your responsibilities, they will not give you too many performance reviews.
4. Opportunities for growth
Depending on the type of roles you pursue, you may find that there is a lot of room for growth in this company.
They do tend to promote supervisors from within the company.
If you start out on the floor of the factory or in the office, you may be able to supervise one day or at least gain more responsibilities and experience as you continue working for them.
Of course, this depends on the availability of management positions and whether you are qualified in comparison to other candidates.
5. Promotion from within
As a follow-up to the previous pro, this company does promote from within.
If you want to start your career here and end your career with retirement from this company, it is totally possible to move up in the company over time.
Some positions may be easier to move up the ladder than others.
Even so, you should mention to a supervisor early if you want to take on more responsibility.
When the company knows that you can see yourself excelling and growing with them, they may be more inclined to prepare you for that kind of upward trajectory in Illinois Tool Works.
6. Healthcare benefits
Many employees at the company enjoy the healthcare benefits that the company offers, according to niche.com.
The company’s website lists fertility treatment benefits and adoption assistance as a benefit.
If you want to grow and support a family, the healthcare and adoption assistance benefits at this company could help you make that happen.
With a stable job here, you will be able to continue supporting your growing family, so it is the best of both worlds.
7. The company encourages employees to volunteer.
When a company openly cares about the community, it makes a difference to the employees.
Some employees at the company report that they are encouraged to volunteer by the company and given incentives to get out in the community to give back.
This matches the company’s caring brand and works out well for the community around ITW workplaces.
8. Paid Time Off
Whether you are working in a factory or an office, everyone enjoys some time to spend with their loved ones or recovering from a long few months at work.
Paid time off is a popular benefit that this company offers.
They also offer maternity and paternity leave for new parents so that they can focus on taking care of their family instead of heading straight back to work.
Cons of Working for Illinois Tool Works
1. Some jobs require heavy travel in the company
While this may be a perk for some, the idea of traveling can often be a huge downside for some folks.
Although many of the roles at this company do not require much travel, if any, some roles require a great deal of travel.
While this can be limited to the Midwest, some jobs need those who fill them to travel internationally.
Depending on your family obligations and preferences, this could make it difficult to work for them.
2. Some supervisors micromanage
Although management styles differ between worksites and even departments, some employees on glassdoor.com complained that their supervisors have a tendency to micromanage.
If you are lucky enough to get a manager who trusts you and lets you work on things at your own pace, then this won’t be a problem.
However, if this is an issue for you, it is important to feel out the management styles of potential supervisors before you commit to the job.
A common thread between reviews of Illinois Tool Works is that there is a lack of communication between departments that are not directly related to each other.
For example, workers in the factory part of ITW sometimes have no idea what other departments such as the office are doing.
This can lead to miscommunication, strained relationships between departments, and other issues.
If open inter-departmental communication is important to you, then this might not be the company for you.
4. The company is not the most progressive or innovative.
Since this company has been around since 1912, it is fair to say that they have grown a lot since their beginnings.
Even so, some employees suggest that they are relatively stuck in their old ways regarding some aspects of corporate culture.
They may not be a first mover or a shaker, but they are a reliable company as a perk.
5. Disconnect between office and floor in some settings
As we mentioned earlier, different departments at this company tend to be in the dark about what one another is doing.
Although it can be helpful to focus on your department, when there is a lack of communication between departments, it creates a disconnection between them.
This is especially true of the office and the factory floor in some of the job sites.
When employees who are working in the same setting don’t connect with each other, there are problems including interpersonal tension and confusion that can arise.
6. Technical leaders may not have much room for advancement.
If you work in the technical areas of this company, you might find that there is a limit to the amount that you can progress in your career.
Once you have exhausted all options for promotion, you may not want to continue with this company.
Additionally, it can be frustrating and boring to not have a goal to work towards.
This can lead to low job satisfaction, complacency, and overall unhappiness at work.
7. Limited opportunities for growth in small company size
Since Illinois Tool Works is not a very large company, there is only so much that any team member can grow.
The small company size can be a benefit when you want a tight-knit sense of community with your coworkers.
However, when it’s time to start earning more or developing your skills in your field, the size of the community can feel stifling.
Being a big fish in a small pond can be enjoyable for some, but others may crave more opportunities for financial improvement or professional development.
8. No opportunities for working from home
For those who need a flexible schedule, the lack of remote options can be inconvenient.
If you can’t work remotely, you may have a hard time making this job work if your circumstances require remote work.
9. Old-fashioned work culture
If a progressive work culture on the cusp of innovation matters to you, this company will probably disappoint you.
It has old-school values that might sit better with some than others.
From their stance on remote work to technology, they are behind the times in a few key areas.
17 Pros and Cons of Working for Illinois Tool Works – Summary Table
| Pros of Working for Illinois Tool Works | Cons of Working for Illinois Tool Works |
|---|---|
| 1. Illinois Tool Works is a Fortune 200 company. | 1. Some jobs require heavy travel in the company |
| 2. Full-time employment opportunities | 2. Some supervisors micromanage |
| 3. Flexible work environment | 3. Lack of communication between unrelated departments |
| 4. Opportunities for growth | 4. The company is not the most progressive or innovative. |
| 5. Promotion from within | 5. Disconnect between office and floor in some settings |
| 6. Healthcare benefits | 6. Technical leaders may not have much room for advancement. |
| 7. The company encourages employees to volunteer. | 7. Limited opportunities for growth in small company size |
| 8. Paid Time Off | 8. No opportunities for working from home |
| 9. Old-fashioned work culture |
Should You Work for Illinois Tool Works?
If you want a stable job at a company that clearly cares about its employees and the community as a whole, Illinois Tool Works might be right for you.
From great healthcare benefits to a flexible work environment to promotions from within the company, there’s a lot to love about ITW if you decide to work for them.
