Pros
Back office is pretty much a retirement community full of Koch “has- beens” who refuse to change their ways. They do not welcome any innovation or new way of doing things. The comptroller has free reign of the place and does whatever with no consequences. HR is completely aware but doesn’t do anything about it or cannot do anything about it, not sure which one it is. Comptroller keeps hiring all past retired friends with no infusion of young ambition into the place. There is no acceptance of new ideas because “that’s how we did it at Koch in the 1800s”. And that’s how it will be done until all the back office is forced to retire.
Cons
Gunvor back office is NOT the place to be if you are young and innovative and looking to join an ambitious team. Instead of being excited about your skill set you will be put on the back burner because the Koch “has beens” are too scared that you will take away their job. The CFO and Comptroller have an extreme silo mentality and isolate the back office team from the rest of the groups and run it like a private Gunvor within Gunvor and do whatever they can to CYA when Geneva rings the phone. They let Geneva know that things are run perfectly in the US office while the train wreck of the back office keeps barreling down the tracks. Plus there are no coworkers that you would have anything in common with if you are ambitious and in your 20s-40s - just being honest. They will say whatever it takes to bring you onboard and once you are there you will be bored out of your mind in the retirement community and their constant urge to hold on to their “faded glory” and jobs that you will leave eventually for a younger team. The front office management is completely aware of this but doesn’t really care as it is the “back office” and as long as the coal is being shoveled. They actually don’t even like the CFO but have to tolerate the comptroller and CFO jokers. Front office is actually the place to be and is run by younger managers that recruit younger ambitious crowd who are given a chance to pump fresh ideas into Gunvor. There is a lot of manual work but it’s the same case at every oil and gas. Don’t make the mistake of entering the back office in any role, you will degress in your career and mentally feel 40 years older because of the “ancients” you are surrounded with, unless that is what you want…it is not a place for YOUNG professionals