Pros
My co-workers at RIF were excellent people who were focused on the mission. But good people don't make up for bad leadership.
Kontras
1. RIF is growing in accounts, but not in staff. This means people's jobs are growing and, in true non-profit creep, the pay doesn't increase, nor do opportunities for promotion. This means that the growth is coming at the cost of people's well-being. 1a. Because RIF is growing so much, there are CONSTANT re-orgs which is disruptive and anxiety producing. Stick with something and let it settle before you create an unnecessary change. EX: I had 5 bosses in the 2 years I was there. 1b. New accounts' requests are hardly met with resistance. It's why for the Programs team, staff are on the road almost the entire month of May and September. Just redirect them into other months. There's 12 of them in total! 2. The yearly reviews and goals don't correspond with pay increases or promotions. You can achieve all your goals by the end of the year and get a perfect score on your review and they still won't promote you. If you are not one of the leadership team's favorites, you are only able to get a raise or promotion at the end of the year. Similarly, there is no reward for additional formalized education (certification, degree, etc.). I took what I could and left. 3. There is a lack of pay equity across the organization. People with lower titles and less experience were making more than me because I was on a team with a smaller budget. 4. There is no onboarding process. On my first day I sat down with Operations to review a PowerPoint, and then was literally given a "website scavenger hunt" to learn about the programs offered. That was my onboarding experience. 5. Bringing in new ideas was often met with a lot of resistance. Even ones that were small. This is probably tied to the lack of diversity at the organization. If you are interviewing at RIF, ask them to walk you around the office and this will become abundantly clear. 6. There is no support for new managers. No training, no tools, nothing which has potential to be seriously damaging. For 70% of people, the supervisor plays a bigger role in mental health than their doctor or therapist (Forbes, Jan 23, 2023). 7. Senior leaders regularly talk poorly about CEO. How does this contribute to a culture of respect? 8. SO many meetings. It's an organization of 38 people... did I really need to spend 20+ of my hours every week in meetings? A bonus absurdity: The CEO received a $48,000 bonus the year she gave us notepads with our names on it for the holiday gift...