Pros
The institute as a whole is doing groundbreaking research that is so inspiring to hear about. The benefits are quite good, lots of really smart people, the young professional population is growing and it seems as if the organization is heading in a positive direction. Definitely a great company to come on as a mid level and sit till retirement.
Cons
The organization refuses to support internal and external communications so you rarely hear about the great work being done. Staff complain nonstop about our poor marketing and comms ability but top leaders dont seem to act on the demand. The organization is so centralized every little sentence to be shared to the public has to be touched by so many people that the organization loses great opportunity to engage with their stakeholders. It seems as if every 2 weeks RTI hires a new VP of something. Its a top heavy beast that, if it falls, it will crumble. While the organization is growing its young professional base there is a strong stigma for junior staff to conduct any work outside of admin or very low-level project management. Your years at the desk speak louder than performance. Ageism could be a potential threat to the organization with some management attitudes. This doesn't permeate across the whole institute but its certainly at large.