Pros
The employees at Wake County are true public servants. Many have advanced degrees and intentionally chose public sector for their careers. Benefits and salaries are competitive. HR training was exceptional as was home/work balance. Ability to work independently and grow was mostly encouraged.
Cons
The last two directors of HR (reporting to the same Deputy Director) have terrorized the HR employees. High turnover, loss of trust, mind games, silos, and ambushes were common and completely unnecessary. Most of the people who left had been there for years and were considered to be exceptional in their fields. This resulted in requiring a higher salary to replace the pushed-out veteran, but the resulting skill set was average at best. A very expensive protocol. HR directors were/are more interested in being in control and not being exposed when incapable of improving operations than actually running a premier county's HR program. The people that reported to the last two directors have more skills, integrity and work ethic than the directors themselves and this was not only obvious, but highly resented.