employer cover photo
employer logo
employer logo

PENFED Credit Union

Engaged Employer

Non-manager staff is Great. No room for Advancement. NOT a Destination employer. - Anonymous employee PENFED Credit Union Employee Review

3.0
Oct 10, 2016
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Most of the people (that are not management) are amazing to work with. Very down to earth and relaxing personalities to work with. You will definitely have work friends. The BEST part of the job. VERY DIVERSE in the Virginia offices. One of the most diverse companies/offices I have seen (in the East Coast offices). You will definitely meet staff from various backgrounds. It's great. Interesting events that can give you opportunities to network and speak to higher ups if thats what you're interest is.

Cons

Let me just begin by saying that my experience at Penfed was great because the people I worked with (not management) made it great. The people are amazing and you get comfortable really quickly. They have your back, which is needed due to the chaos and lack of process this company has. I was in a department that has had a revolving door of management since I started. And BOTH EVP's that ran the department were WAY too involved with the department and instilled fear in their employees. Is that what a good leader is? The sad thing is that the directors and managers are instilled with this fear. They do not function without being in CONSTANT fear of the executive vps, that are more involved than they need to be. We have EVPs verbally abusing and running the show here and being involved in things they shouldn't be involved in. One EVP is taking over the events and verbally abusing the entire staff. The entire department is required to take part of events or anything that the EVP Is involved in at all times. Because of the constant abuse and fear, managers do not have time to focus on their staff. They're too busy trying to please the CEO and the EVP. They could care less about the staff and they SAY they care...but they are constantly neglecting the staff. Due to this, the department has actually experienced a huge turnover rate. If you want to grow, you will not grow here. There is no room for advancement. However, if you just want to work here just to work and meet some great people, and are not interested in career advancement, then this is the place for you. Just remember you are on your own. You will have to make the experience a great one ON YOUR OWN. Your manager is just there to let you know if the EVP will be ok w the work you produce and not because its logical, but because it just has to get done or ELSE. The work you do will not have any logic behind it and absolutely no logic. They will not have time to pay attention to your progress. There are too many last minute things happening at Penfed. What should take 3 to 6 months to release and complete, ends up happening in a messy manner within 5 days. No structure and the CEO only cares about the numbers. Wait, this isn't this a Credit Union? They are far from the destination employer they are trying to be. A destination employer cares about their employees. Only staff is looking out for staff. Otherwise you're on your own. Management only cares about management. Come here if you need good people to work with, and a full plate of work to do, but that is about it!

Explore other reviews about PENFED Credit Union

5.0
Mar 25, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Awesome place and people - complex and large finance operation and balance sheet yet still small enough to make an impact and build up solutions from the ground floor - creative place!

Cons

Sometimes can be stretched for more resources

2.0
Mar 16, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great staff and middle management. Good benefits and facilities.

Cons

Upper Management - same tune as all the other reviews. This place is full of great people who don't know they are great. It's also full of bad leaders who think they are great. Unfortunately, the best performers are often rewarded with carrying the burden of underperformers and non-contributing leaders. In certain teams there is very limited in upward mobility. They are slow to weed out low performers and ineffective managers. All in, strong performers and high achievers might find this place frustrating. This is a place for those who like to coast through.

3
avatar
PENFED Credit Union Response
3mo
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We appreciate your recognition of our people and benefits, and we value input that helps inform us of our ongoing improvement efforts. We wish you the best in your future endeavors.
See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All