Pros
Some of the staff are truly dedicated and believe in the mission. The potential of this organization is great. Most teams/departments are able to work from home. It depends on how your manager “feels” about it. There is paid maternity and paternity leave if that matters to you. The kids that you are working for are the golden lining. Seeing the impact at events fuels the dedication to the mission.
Cons
The internal growth potential is nearly non existent and is based on favoritism. The concept of teamwork is part of the core values that FIRST wants their participants to have yet very little teamwork exists internally. Leadership is lacking and experiences great turnover. There is very little loyalty and work life balance is often not respected. The current 2020/2021 leadership does not value staff perspective or insight. Their goals are unrealistic and often not planned out very well. Staff development is often the first thing to be ignored and go by the wayside. This is across the organization. Departments are very siloed and consistency as to how teams/departments are managed is all over the map. Most employees fear speaking up or sharing improvements because they are often dealt with passive aggressively and are made to feel as if they are ungrateful. Many times I was told I should be happy I have a job and that all places have their problems. As a staff member I was often times made to feel like it was a privledge to work there. Consistency is lacking across the board. It affects the effectiveness of the whole organization. Many think working here is a dream job but it appears very differently from the outside as it is on the inside. The morale has dropped drastically over many years of turnover and leadership and changing priorities and directions. There is a lot of back stabbing and toxicity. The trust and respect is majorly lacking. Your loyalty, hard work and dedication is often ignored and overlooked. It is truly unfortunate. I feel like the leadership says a lot of the right things but their actions do not follow through.