Broken Under the Big-Top - Project Manager Cherokee Federal Employee Review

1.0
8 Jul 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Competitive salary: not great, but not in the >50% quartiles. HR attempts to keep the hires in the 25%-50% range.

Cons

There is not enough space here. The entire Circus is dictated (intentional) by two men. The Cowboy cannot even understand what government contracting is about and the Ringmaster doesn’t care as long as Sales are up to give tons of money to the Stakeholder Community (Concessions) and zero internal improvements. Running it in the ground is still running it! (Read that again.) The reason other reviews on here from the worker-bees are about no leadership and an online only company is because first-line leaders do not have the authority, time or tools to give the workforce what they need. Broken internal departments include: recruiting (joke), security, finance, billing, A/P, HR, and the worst-of-worst is Subcontracts and they sit in the same tent as the cowboy. The government should think again about partnering with this circus. It is though this contracting company is built to do anything but contracting - they don’t understand what the work is. CFED cannot turnaround a subcontract in less than 5 months!! They have no pipeline requisition process so every contract hire starts at square-one. CFED cannot invoice accurately in the 1980’s processes they use and this frustrates customers. Internal process really do not exist and the support technology is broken. It is like bad-aids and duct tape hold this circus together. Ringmaster and cowboy want a vending machine company where everything is automated with broken technology, but because the Concession employees cried and whined at all the telework in federal contracting, everyone has to go back to the tent like its the 80’s. Successful companies have pivoted after COVID. CFED went back in time to Pee-Wee’s Big Top. Management vs Leadership means there is no leadership, which is a result of “flattening” your model. A small spot bonus to a great employee has to go all the way to the Ringmaster because the lion-tamers in the trenches have no authority, no discretion, no budget for even a $500 bonus….even if your project is reaping great profit. It’s all about the optics with the Concessionaire. For years the 2 “leaders” cried “we are just going through growing pains…” “as a result of our phenomenal revenue (read sales) growth” as the answer to why internal processes (read day-to-day operations) remain in shambles. AT WHAT POINT DOES GROWING PAIN JUST BECOME APATHY AND LAZINESS? Answer: look behind the new pretty Big-Top, it already did years ago. That’s why your good people are leaving in droves. Look around at who is no longer there. If one is far enough above reality, a beautiful shining light of hope….just might be an actual train wreck.

Explore other reviews about Cherokee Federal

5.0
30 Oct 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great project to worked with and a lot of opportunities to grow.

Cons

i dont have anything to say.

2.0
17 Apr 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Note: this is regarding an experience with an acquired company of CFed's, who still act as their own kingdom not necessarily CFed themselves. Aside from interviewing and being hired for a particular role and doing a great job at it and then being told that they require a different skillset a few months later on top of delivering a broken system after 2+ years of work to a high profile military client, they are not a bad company for whom to work :). They are in a very crowded space (fed gov consulting) and try their best. They also do their best to maintain decency internally when their gut instincts tell them not to. CFed themselves did get these right: - IT Helpdesk: the best in the business! - Onboarding - Benefit Communications - Technology and Security related messaging - Compliance Training

Cons

Most of the Cons were noted in the Pros.

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