Pros
Very good remuneration Nice offices in Reading None other than above- just having to meet minimum word criteria for the pros
Cons
Lack of diversity in the company. To get promoted you need to have the right face and know the right people. Take a look at the make up of the Exec board. Majority are waiting to sit there comfortably for a few more years and take their fat pensions. To progress in the company you HAVE to wear a 3pc suit to the office (ideally blue suit and brown shoes). Too many cooks- to get a simple yes/no decision can take months and has to be passed up the chain to be reviewed by a minimum of 5-6 others who don't have a clue anyway. No ideas/strategy- still trying to figure out how to rip off existing vulnerable customer base rather than focusing on innovation, new services and products. Tenure rather than hard work and delivery is valued more. You are actually better off sitting there and doing nothing for few years and you'll be guaranteed to get promoted. If you bring forward new ideas you are bullied. Most of the senior teams have been here an average of 10-15 years each; they have no idea what's happening in the external world and so it's impossible for them to take risks and change/accept new ideas. All of management is unapproachable and they think they are running Google. They need to get some proper training from modern leaders. Safety taken to another level. In fact you get lectured on what you should not be doing in your own time at home. You could lose your job if thy find out you're in to extreme sports. Lack of empowerment- not only is your work uncredited it's also useless. Huge number of PowerPoint presentations which never get used. Heavily process driven with no actual output.