Pros
- Chemonics is a leader in implementing USAID contracts, and the company truly values providing high-quality service. As a result, the company is successful and there are opportunities for growth. - Invests more in professional development of junior and mid-level staff than other companies in the industry. The fact that professional development is a company priority is unique in this industry. Young professionals have many opportunities to advance and gain exposure to development work. - The people who work here tend to be smart, talented, and generally fun to work with, and tend to have a high level of professional maturity. - There are many opportunities to move throughout the company. This allows employees to gain exposure to different regions and aspects of development work, and also to move to different divisions with different styles of management/leadership.
Cons
- Frustrating for mid-level professionals who come in through the entry level program (generally the only way to enter the company), since you are underpaid, overworked, and your previous experience is generally not valued but rather exploited (you just get more work). Those with more experience tend to rise faster in the mid/long term, but by the time you reap benefits you may find yourself burnt out and frustrated. - Promotions and rewards tend to correlate more strongly with the length of time with the company rather than performance - this creates an attitude of entitlement in some cases, and a feeling of lack of recognition for outstanding performance in others. - There is a culture of gossip and over-scrutinising people at a personal level that is not relevant to performance. I attribute this to the generalist nature of the position and the strong emphasis on soft skills - given the high professional calibre of people here, this gets taken overboard. - There is room for improvement in terms of resource management - some regions/divisions are more proactive in recruitment and staffing than others.