Inspiring field work; toxic HQ office environment
Pros
The mission and values and the vast majority of the people you work with are all wonderful and inspiring -- especially as it pertains to the field work. What we do on the ground is truly amazing. I've long said that it seems a prerequisite for working here is that you must be a genuinely nice person down to your core, and you can see that in about 99% of the people you work with.
Cons
I really didn't want to throw gasoline on this fire, but it seems Executive Leadership is just not getting the memo (or doesn't care) about the toxic environment in the Boston office. Sadly, a few sour apples are ruining the bunch -- especially in the Boston office. Shortly after moving into a beautiful new office space in Back Bay, we learned the organization was in a massive budget crisis, and a hiring and travel freeze was put in place. Morale plummeted as numerous colleagues and friends were laid off, fired, or just jumped ship. Now that we are "running lean," work-life balance seems a figment of the imagination, and a formerly collaborative and friendly environment has shifted to a stressful "every man for himself" situation. While the shake-up in staff hasn't been completely terrible, and we are now bringing in new hires who all seem to be pretty great, there remains little opportunity for advancement for those who have weathered the storm (unless your boss jumps ship, and you're left trying to pick up the pieces). There is very little investment in supporting people's professional development, or even trying to help inexperienced managers acclimate to roles that fell unexpectedly into their laps. Many managers are wonderful, a few are horrible, and there is no real way to address any problems. For all the talk of diversity and inclusion, empowering the little guy, and social justice -- the Boston office is oppressively hierarchical. Whatever the boss-man says, goes -- even if it's obviously not the right move, may be hurting more than it's helping, or could potentially be out of alignment with MA employment law. When people raise concerns about unfair treatment or inconsistent application of policy, they are shut down, shut out, and essentially gaslighted until they leave on their own or are fired. HR is truly horrific. I second the other reviewer's report on HR participating in name-calling, having experienced this first-hand on a number of occasions. While there is one guy in that department who is truly wonderful, warm, compassionate, and has a sincere desire to help -- he has no real power to affect change, even when he tries. Others on his team are either woefully incompetent or seem to be in willful denial of any problems that come to their attention. Serious procedures you would absolutely expect to have a policy guiding their implementation are completely devoid of such. If a manager wants to get back at an employee for raising genuine concerns in a diplomatic way, that manager can definitely do that with impunity. Employees have to beg and plead for help from HR, only to discover that such assistance, if provided, is hollow at best -- and at worst, could completely backfire, making matters worse than they already were.
