Support Your Team: Especially New Starters - SEND Consultant Sunshine Support Employee Review

The team is genuinely lovely on the whole. The results of advocacy for clients.

Alignment, the ethos, inclusivity, neurotypical awareness and what the company stands for for clients isn’t supported into the workplace. Over time is expected and disregarded as part and parcel of the job role. Whilst working can feel flexible it is often an on demand service and your presence expected. The job role forever changes on a whim, quite often without consult and again an expectation that you accept new workload and these changes. Tasks and goal posts continually move to suit others needs. New tasks are added to work load extending your hours and time without compensating for it and again without consult. Likewise things outside your remit of hours and contract are added, adding again to work load, hours and unsociable hours also, you are assigned things without the basic etiquette of simply asking. “No” may be a full sentence, but cannot be used here as delegation happens and that’s final. You’re encouraged, and actively scrutinised to use your own personal social media to push out content, boost views, love posts and create a false narrative ultimately trying to increase sales and targets to create cash flow. This is actively placed and monitored on your PMR. Training and progression is all in house, there is no career growth with any qualification. Again expectation to attend in house training even if these don’t align with your working hours which leads to awkward conversations which go unanswered. PMRs feel designed for you to fail, even if you feel you meet requirements, continually marked down in areas you cannot control. Marked down in areas you know others themselves are not doing, yet you are penalised. With each new job change and contract a new Probation Period starts. Communication is muddy, often reneged upon, classed as “miscommunication” and pushed aside. Quarterly Meetings and Hub Days are mandatory and whilst developing connection for work colleagues, actually feel like they paper over cracks. Sales are a high priority and whilst they are part of the business, the company really needs a sale team to undertake these tasks. You need to be a “jack of all trades, which makes you a master of none”. It is not a flex to do so many roles and do them poorly which is constantly picked up upon, yet not alleviated with a more a robust staffing structure.

Oversee and manage your own diary Fellow SEND Consultants are wonderful people

Toxic, narcissistic and manipulative behaviour from the top down. Unrealistic and unmanageable expectations Claim your working hours are flexible when in reality, due to the workload you end up working ridiculously long hours to meet the needs of the business. The toxic work culture is dressed up with short term fix hub days. Huge focus on “connection” being a key part of the business core when in reality, it’s all lies. Salary does not match the work demands. The job description itself is incorrect. You are not just a SEND Consultant, you are expected to create a deliver webinar content, social media presence 24/7 and other unrealistic tasks which are often thrown at you very last minute. The workplace bullying is disgusting and very noticeable. If you are not favourable and “good on camera”, you are simply not good enough for the task in hand. The top management have been known to favour specific people and make the less favourable ones very uncomfortable. You are micro managed by the head of consultancy if there is a slight chance you may be seen to not “cope” or keep up with the constant “sunny disposition”. The CEO herself creates all webinars and social media content around her lived experience but doesn’t actually allow professional experience or learnt skills. She even gives training on how to be more her! Claiming that you can’t use presentation notes - not very neuro affirming! Performance management reviews are designed to make you feel inadequate. No career progression or opportunities for CPD. Unhealthy “click” with CEO and higher management. CEO has specific expectation of who she wants to employ. If they don’t fit the box - they aren’t her favourite!