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Gates Foundation

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No heart, no soul - Senior Program Officer Gates Foundation Employee Review

2.0
1 Jul 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Access to resources to invest in important areas

Cons

Constant layoffs and turnover due to consultant-driven strategy changes every couple of years. Institution does not care about employees, no effort to grow or retain, sees no value in institutional knowledge or mature relationships with partners and grantees. No logic, no values to layoffs. Behind the times in many areas because listening to consultants with no content expertise rather than technical experts on staff. Despite the rhetoric, extremely risk averse in grant-making. Delegation of authority (everything above 5 M needs approval at the Presidential level) leads to huge bottlenecks and very slow process--approx. 1 year to make a grant... whether it's for 5 million or 30 million--despite the fact that they obsess about strategy, have yearly portfolio reviews, etc.

Explore other reviews about Gates Foundation

5.0
24 Apr 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Everyone is aligned to the mission. Fantastic benefits.

Cons

These could be pros for some but travel and ambiguity are things to deal with

2.0
12 Apr 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Benefits, Resources (IT, budgets, facilities).Employees perks are embarrassingly privileged when you consider the focus of the foundation.

Cons

Poor leadership that favors group think over competency. Very much a case of emperor’s new clothes across the board. Lack of accountability means goals just change and poor leaders remain in place. The waste and lack of fiscal responsibility is embarrassing and perpetuates laziness and a lack of innovation. There is a lot of discussion about culture and creating a supportive work culture but it falls well short. Am overall very, very disappointed in what had the potential to be so impactful but will fall short. If you want to contribute your talents to an organization that is truly invested in making the world a better place, consider other options, I know I am.

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