Pros
Meaningful mission and work that genuinely matters Many talented, committed colleagues Opportunity to make a real impact at scale
Cons
Urgency / quality: Speed is prioritised over quality. Timelines are often unrealistic for complex work, which drives rework, stress and burnout. Strategy / moving targets: Strategic direction feels inconsistent. Priorities shift quickly, creating “moving targets” and undermining confidence in delivery. Closed-door decisions: Decisions are often made behind closed doors by a small group and introduced “out of the blue,” with limited rationale or strategic framing. Experts bypassed: Subject-matter experts are frequently bypassed, even on major company-wide decisions. Input is sometimes requested only after a “done deal” is announced and problems emerge. Consultants: Reliance on external consultants brought in to “assess” the business and confirm what internal teams already know, despite the cost. Hierarchy / power dynamics: The ''new culture'' feels strongly hierarchical. Senior new starters and newly promoted colleagues become overly directive quickly, which reduces collaboration and psychological safety. Monitoring / meetings: Calendars and meetings can be closely scrutinised. People are asked to justify meetings, and there can be pressure to remove meetings by instruction, creating a low-trust “watched” environment. Optics / mission drift: Work can feel driven by optics (“see and be seen”) and differentiation from previous leadership rather than measurable KPIs and sustainable business development. Client/service-user outcomes have become secondary. Undoing the past: There is a noticeable drive to undo previous ways of working simply because they’re associated with former leadership, with change driven more by differentiation than evidence or outcomes.