It was the best of times, became the worst of times
Pros
ACARA is an independent government authority with the goal of improving learning for young Australians through world-class school curriculum, assessment and reporting. The majority of staff are generally incredibly passionate, knowledgeable, intelligent and friendly. It is a great workplace if you genuinely want to make a difference to Australia's future by improving educational outcomes for K-12 school students. It has attracted staff who work tirelessly and selfishly to achieve these goals. If you can tolerate the many cons, then the pros are great. The pay is above industry average, the offices are well located, modern and well resourced. There is a union (as there is in all government agencies and authorities) which provide some limited support when it comes to (repeated) restructures and the enterprise bargaining agreement. However, union membership is as low as 5-10% of the staff. Theoretically the hours are flexible and you can on occasion work from home.
Cons
It appears that the only positive reviews this organisation has, appear to be thinly disguised internal communications attempts to rectify the well-deserved scathing reviews of the CEO and executive. The vast majority of the staff are extremely dissatisfied with the current leadership. Government funding and the changing political landscape does, in part contribute to the feelings of insecurity. However, the biggest con to ACARA is the toxic workplace environment. The environment is full of cronyism, bullying, inconsistent application of rules, manipulation and an expectation to work far beyond your job description with little to no recognition. Staff accept that difficult decisions have had to be made, and generally accept these in the best interests of the organisation and the educational outcomes of young Australians. However, the main cause of unhappiness of the staff is the culture and the poor leadership of the executive and CEO. The CEO and executive demonstrate and promote a culture that is, for most, becoming intolerable. The executive are seen as corrupt, insecure, defensive. It is not uncommon for staff members to leave the office in tears due to the way they are spoken to, bullied, and manipulated. Some staff do thrive in this environment, if they mirror the executive's behaviour, which most refuse to do. Any attempt by staff to attempt to address their grievances are met with a HR team who has had a 100% turnover, know few staff and only serve to protect the executives bullying and mismanagement. Restructures are frequent and are managed badly.