Meaningful mission overshadowed by leadership and structural challenges
Pros
City of Miami provides a pension, one of the few in the State. Health benefits are really great, in which you are able to utilize after 3-months of employment. The City has a union you can join if you are full-time. The mission of the Office of Resilience and Sustainability is critical, focused on advancing equity, resilience, and climate preparedness, which are deeply important and timely in Miami. Many colleagues across departments are warm, professional, and supportive. The work allows for somewhat meaningful contributions to climate action in the City of Miami.
Cons
Leadership is a major weakness. Chronic delays, indecision, and unprofessional behavior from senior leaders. Staff wellbeing is compromised by a hostile work environment, high turnover, and poor people management. Inappropriate, retaliatory, and offensive comments made during performance reviews, including gendered slurs and salary-based shaming. No formal HR follow-up despite repeated requests. A revolving door of staff in such a small team, with minimal reflection or corrective action, undermines institutional knowledge, disrupts project continuity, and ultimately wastes taxpayer dollars. The office’s current organizational placement limits its authority and resources, resulting in ineffective cross-department coordination. Favoritism and dismissive management eroded inclusion and trust. Experienced burnout caused by last-minute bottlenecks resulting from leadership not reading emails or excessive delays in project approvals. The City is poorly managed from top-down.
