Pros
* Talented and hardworking team members across the department.
* Opportunities to gain cross-functional experience and exposure to a variety of projects.
* Team members are often supportive of one another despite leadership challenges.
Cons
* Project Services leadership operates with a narrow, rigid definition of what a “successful” project manager looks like, and advancement often depends more on alignment with a specific leadership style than actual performance or impact.
* Employees with different cognitive or communication styles, including neurodivergent individuals, may find their strengths undervalued, while his or her deviations from the norm are scrutinized.
* There is little room for authenticity. Employees may feel pressure to conform to be seen as leadership material.
* Even infrequent mistakes can become long-term reputational markers, with limited opportunity for growth or reset.
* A noticeable gap exists between positive performance feedback and actual career progression, even for tenured high performers with strong stakeholder feedback.
* Managers are not consistently positioned or empowered to advocate effectively for their team members.
* Policies, including hybrid/work-from-home expectations, are applied inconsistently, impacting trust and fairness.
* Leadership culture can feel cliquey, with visibility and advancement influenced by informal networks rather than transparent criteria.