I feel like I work at a local office that isn't actually part of the company and I wonder if it's just this office or if the feeling is common at other office locations too. Opportunities are limited to just what the local office is capable of selling. Once in a while an out-of-market opportunity becomes available, but the local office pressures you not to take it. Feedback is weaponized - mostly rumor mill he-said/she-said with no attempts to get well-rounded 360 feedback. This place has a STRONG good ol' boy/girl system of favorites and newbies and outsiders aren't welcome to the inner circles. You are expected to bill your 40, but work 50 and then participate heavily in another 5-10 "extra curricular" employee resource groups and initiatives. If you are on the bench, you must do menial intern work and are discouraged from personal development efforts that take away from your ability to do it. I have been told not to pursue certification because it was "self-serving". There are "required" courses, but no one around who is allowed to teach them, lest they loose 2 hours that could be billed to a client. This is not a safe place to be your true self, and heaven-forbid that you provide your honest opinions internally, even when asked directly for them. If your feedback isn't shiny and happy, you are instantly labeled as defensive and hostile which becomes part of every snapshot review for the foreseeable future. This culture is terrified to do actual consulting - the kind where you sometimes have to be truly honest with a client and tell them the ugly truth and guide them to better solutions with strong, direct conversations.
