Pros
Attracts bright and talented people. Highly recognised brand. Good exposure and experience if wishing to pursue work in government or other highly bureaucratic environment.
Cons
With the exception of extreme emergency situations, staff is not enabled to act or complete tasks in any kind of timely fashion. Clients, beneficiaries, donors are not the centre or focus of work due to excessive process geared toward serving internal needs. Low motivation to achieve, little to no accountability for projects and timelines as an organisation, yet staff are pressured to be accountable. Pay is non-competitive across industry standards and there is little to no opportunity for advancement or training if you are able to secure a permanent position. In-house training is either inaccessible or irrelevant. National approach to programs and staff management creates jobs and work but outputs are watered down and fail to acknowledge regional difference, barely meeting lowest common denominator needs.
