NCC Group reviews

Poor and absent leadership. Not in touch with what happens on the ground and don't really care either

NCC under Rob Cotton was a harsh and brutal place that treated its employees like school children (I could fill pages on that topic!). The company is slowly getting better after he's gone, but his 17 year legacy lives on for the time being! If you are considering a job there ask to see the company policies -maternity, sick pay, flexible working etc. Ask about benefits. Ask to meet member of your new team (in confidence) to get their view on what it's really like. Maybe not all are relevant to you, but it will give you an idea of the kind of company you are dealing with. Day to day, it depends a lot on your manager and working for different managers is like working for different companies. Some are great. A lot are awful. There is very little in way of a companywide culture. Given who they are NCC is surprisingly backwards when it comes to modern working (minimal working from home, poor IT systems etc.). A real shock if you coming from a modern flexible company. People working in the corporate functions like I was (legal, HR, marketing, finance) are treated as second class citizens. Corporate functions are just left to rot. Prized above all are the sales staff. Technical staff come in a close but definite second place. Everyone else is expendable or an obstacle. High regard for sales staff is ironic because many are poorly trained, junior and clearly out of their depth leaving other people to do their jobs for them. It can be really depressing at times. No sense of team across the company at all. Sales treat everyone as the enemy. Career development is non-existent, it's all desperate firefighting to support sales. New management has failed to inspire. They are making huge and controversial changes too fast, and the disruption is driving people away. A big deal is made about communication and listening to staff but most agree it's just hot air. Staff turnover is seriously high which is acknowledged by senior management but nothing is really being done about it. Rapid and expensive change seems like a gamble on a desperate attempt to save the company, and people are leaving because they don't believe that gamble will pay off.