National Wildlife Federation reviews

In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that leadership is distancing itself from meaningful staff feedback and accountability. Multiple changes to internal processes have limited opportunities for employees to safely and candidly share concerns. For example: The chat function was removed from all-staff meetings, reducing real-time, informal opportunities for staff to engage or raise concerns. Leadership recently solicited anonymous questions for an all-staff meeting via a survey, but required individuals to submit their names to receive a response — effectively undermining the purpose of anonymity and creating a chilling effect on participation. Additionally, feedback provided to leadership, particularly to our People Team (the equivalent of HR), is rarely reflected in organizational processes. A notable example is the performance evaluation system, where widespread concerns raised by staff last year were not meaningfully addressed in subsequent revisions or training. Under the new system, staff are required to consistently exceed the expectations of their job descriptions — rather than meeting them — in order to qualify for merit-based raises. This creates unrealistic standards and contributes to a culture where baseline strong performance is undervalued. While the organization has an ombudsman resource in place, many staff do not view this tool as effective or independent in addressing concerns or protecting against potential retaliation. This further limits employees’ options for safely voicing issues and diminishes trust in available feedback channels. The organization also continues to suffer from a lack of transparent decision-making and clear communication from leadership. Critical issues are left unresolved for extended periods, leaving staff without direction or clarity on priorities and expectations. These challenges are further compounded by a hiring freeze, a promotion freeze, and annual cost-of-living increases that fail to keep pace with the realities of inflation and rising expenses. Without clear communication about these constraints or a roadmap for addressing them, staff are left feeling uncertain about their futures within the organization and undervalued for their work. Collectively, these trends contribute to an environment where employees feel unheard, unsupported, and unclear about organizational priorities — conditions that ultimately jeopardize morale, effectiveness, and retention.

I know several people who have been in therapy for months to deal with the trauma of working here. Tons of politics and undercutting. Unclear how money is truly being spent (pledged money for a cause does not seem to go to the actual cause but to NWF itself). No accountability for leadership. One leader took off for 3 weeks and her away message was "I will delete all of my emails when I get back - if important, resend then." Terrible HR department who is not looking out for employees. Terrible leadership who randomly makes long-winded rambling speeches that other employees have to clean up afterwards. Do not expect to get promoted. Do expect to spend a lot of time circling around emails in NWF within the organization, without them going anywhere. Genuinely does not seem like NWF has made environmental impact: think to yourself, what have they done that has changed the game for the environment? Benefits are not open to everyone - the therapist on-staff gossips about staff to other staff in therapy sessions, and her sessions are always booked up. Interns rarely get hired. Lots of talk about being equitable and white guilt but organization does not promote kindness or have good retention of BIPOC staff. Extremely toxic culture - I would not recommend this organization to anyone, not even if you're trying to get your foot in the door, as it can come with years of professional baggage. Worked insane hours.