Smart people, poor leadership, and a culture that punishes perceived threats - Analyst AME Research Employee Review

Nothing more than a nicely blended team personality

Management is narrow-minded, especially Shaun — the CEO. Full of talk, full of empty promises that never materialize. Being visionary is fine, but you also need to understand the actual steps required to get there. Otherwise it is just fantasy. The company claims to be international, but in reality it feels more like a family-run business without strong professional credibility. Economists who were hired with strong academic and professional backgrounds end up being undermined by leadership coming from people with unclear qualifications, profiles, and experience, which is Shaun’s daughter lol The Indonesia team often becomes the scapegoat for problems that actually originate from the inability of the Australia team to deliver their work properly. Accountability does not seem to flow upward. For fresh graduates reading this review: I know the salary offered may look attractive and above market rate. Do not be tempted. The salary can become a trap that makes it harder for you to move later to companies with healthier and more professional cultures because your pay here may price you out of better environments. There is very little real professional development here. Do not expect meaningful growth.

Colleagues are generally encouraging, office location is good. Has the potential to be a great company if leadership were to step down

The company is defined by a toxic leadership culture, stemming directly from the CEO Shaun Browne. While he may have achieved financial success in the past, that success has translated into arrogance, detachment, and a complete inability to lead, adapt, or grow a modern business. Shaun is at his core a bully. He belittles staff, talks down to people, and assumes everyone around him is beneath him. There is no space for open conversation. Employees are often too anxious or intimidated to speak up. He does not welcome feedback, but the reality is that no one bothers anymore because it is so clear he wouldn't listen. The atmosphere around him is tense, uncomfortable, and often demeaning. Meetings are long-winded, rambling, and incoherent. Strategy is non-existent. Direction changes frequently and without explanation. One day something is praised, the next it is criticised. At AME, whenever someone with REAL leadership ability is brought in - someone who could actually build a healthier culture and scale the company - they're eventually sidelined or pushed out. It's a cycle that repeats because Shaun simply cannot tolerate sharing control or being challenged - even constructively. The place is a dictatorship. While other "leaders" in the business clearly recognise this, they stay silent to protect their positions. That silence has only reinforced dysfunction.